The Unmasked Mystery III
by Azaelia Silmarwen
Summary: [To be re-written]. Voldemort is slowly taking over the wizarding world and it is up to Harri, Ron and Hermione to stop him by finding his remaining Horcruxes, but will destroying them be enough?
1. Weddings and Escapes

**A/N: Please read Unmasked Mystery II first.**

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><p><strong>CHAPTER ONE: WEDDINGS AND ESCAPES<strong>

It was summer once more and Harri was currently at Acacia Palace sorting through all her belongings, for her biggest and most dangerous adventure yet: her quest to find and destroy all of her uncle's Horcruxes. During the summer she spent most of her time in her room packing up all of her clothes, except her party dresses - which she never worn - since they wouldn't be appropriate. She had also been sorting through all her books, to see which ones might be helpful in tracking down and finding all the Horcruxes. She had already packed all the books she could find on Horcruxes - she stole them from her Grandfather's old office before she left Hogwarts - and she was sure that she would find other useful things in her other books.

To be honest, Harri was grateful that she could remain hidden in her room without raising suspicious; most people thought that she had locked herself in her room because she was still grieving the loss of her grandfather, Albus Dumbledore...but she wasn't. While her grandfather's death still caused her great pain, she pushed it aside so she could confront her upcoming task.

Life at Acacia was not as Harri had remembered it. Normally its bright and beautiful halls were full of life and love, but now, they were filled with nothing but misery. Minerva was still coming to terms with her husband's death and youngest son's betrayal, which meant that she always sad and miserable. It also made her extremely overprotective of Harri. Rhiannon had taken it upon herself to manage everything that her daughter was unable to do, while Severus' was-to-be-fiancée, Aurora, remained to help them out, regardless of the fact that they were no longer going to be related by marriage.

In fact, no exciting event happened until Bill and Fleur's wedding. It was after the wedding that Harri was secretly going to sneak off with Ron and Hermione to find the rest of the Horcruxes. She had given up trying to change their minds about joining her. However, Harri had been ready since the first week of summer break, but she had to wait for her Trace to break, plus Fleur and Mrs Weasley would kill her for not coming to the wedding.

The day of the wedding found, Minerva, Rhiannon and Aurora all stating in the entrance hall of Acacia waiting upon Harri. When Harri did arrive, she was wearing a knee-length floaty, low cut, light green dress with thick singlet sleeves covered with diamantes - though knowing Rhiannon some of them might have been diamonds - with a matching strip around her waist. She was wearing matching high heeled shoes, silver vine necklace and earrings - nobody had seen her in the old Valkyrie pendant Draco had given her since Albus' death - and a small silver handbag. Her midnight black hair was all curled and pulled back out of her face.

'Well, we might as well go now, the wedding starts at three. Doesn't matter if we are a littl ebit early,' said Rhiannon, before Apparating, followed by Minerva and then Aurora and Harri. Harri still didn't have her liscence yet.

When they arrived, they saw Ron, Fred and George standing outside a great, white marquee, in the orchard, awaiting the arrival of the wedding guests.

'Well don't you ladies look lovely today,' greeted George.

'And you three look quite handsome,' smiled Harri, giving them all hugs.

'Don't we always?' Laughed Fred. 'But seriously, when I get married, I'm not bothering with any of this nonsense. You can all wear whatever you like.'

'What about Molly?' Asked Aurora.

'I'll put a full Body-Bind Curse on her until it's all over,' shrugged Fred, making them all laugh, as Ron showed them to their seats.

'I can't wait to see what Fleur's wearing,' Harri said excitedly to her family. She now classed Aurora as family.

'I bet see will look very beautiful,' said Aurora. 'Especially if what she wore to the Yule Ball is anything to go by.

Harri sat and spoke with her family as guest after guest appeared. Fred was extremely smug when he got to escort a couple of Fleur's cousins, whereas Ron did not look very happy when he had to escort an elderly witch with a beaky nose, red-trimmed eyes, and a feathery pink hat with made her look like a bad-tempered flamingo.

'...and your hair's much to long, Ronald, for a moment I thought you were Ginervra. Merlin's beard, what is Xenophilius Lovegood wearing? He looks like an omelette. Well if it isn't Harrietta Dumbledore!' She suddenly barked at Harri.

'Oh, Harri, this is my Auntie Muriel,' introduced Ron.

'It's a pleasure to meet you, madam,' Harri said politely.

'Hmm, I guess you weren't boasting when you said you were friends with her, but why on earth would a pretty girl like you have a boy's nickname?' She demanded.

'For a long time I grew up thinking that my name was "Harry" and it just stuck,' explained Harri.

Muriel looked at Harri for a moment before saying,' You need to get a girl like this one, Ronald. She looks capalbe of being a good wife.' Harri blushed, while her family tried not to laugh. 'I've just been instructing the bride on how best to wear my tiara. Goblin-made, you know, and been in my family for centuries. She's a good-looking girl, but still - _French_. Well, well, find me a good seat, Ronald, I am a hundred and seven and I ought not to be on my feet too long.'

As Ron led his aunt away, and Harri joined in laughing with her family. Harri was still red.

Next minute Ron was standing next to her again.

'Sorry about that. She's an absolute nightmare.' Said Ron, glancing over at his aunt who was now shouting at someone else. 'She use to come for Christmas every year, the, thank God, she took offence because Fred and George set off a Dungbomb under her chair at dinner. Dad always says she'll have written them out of her will - like they care, they're going to end up richer than anyone in the family, rate they're going...wow,' he added, blinking rapidly as Hermione came hurrying towards them. 'You look great!'

'Always the tone of surprise,' said Hermione, though she smiled. She was wearing a floaty, lilac-coloured dress with matching high heels; her hair was sleek and shiny. "Your Great-Aunt Muriel doesn't agree, I just met her upstairs while she was giving Fleur the tiara. She says, "Oh dear, is this the Muggle-born?" and then, "Bad posture and skinny ankles."'

'Don't take it personally, she's rude to everyone,' said Ron.

'Talking about Muriel?' inquired George, re-emerging from the marquee with Fred. 'Yeah, she' just told me my ears are lopsided. Old bat. I wish old Uncle Bilius was still with us, though; he was a right laugh at weddings.'

'Wasn't he the one who saw a Grim and died twenty-four hours later?' asked Hermione.

'Well, yeah, he went a bit odd toward the end,' conceded George.

'But before he went loopy he was the life and soul of the party.' said Fred. 'He used to down an entire bottle of firewhisky, then run onto the dance floor, hoist up his robes, and start pulling bunches of flowers out of his—'

'Yes, he sounds a real charmer,' said Hermione, while Harri roared with laughter. The others looked at her and smiled. It was good to see her smiling and laughing after her grandfather's death.

'Never married, for some reason,' said Ron.

'You amaze me,' said Hermione.

They were all laughing so much that none of them noticed the latecomer, a dark-haired young man with a large, curved nose and thick black eyebrows, until he held out his invitation to Ron and said, with his eyes on Hermione, 'You look vunderful.'

'Viktor!' she shrieked, and dropped her small beaded bag, which made a loud thump quite disproportionate with its size. Harri thought that it might not be as it seemed. As she scrambled, blushing, to pick it up, she said, 'I didn't know you were—goodness—it's lovely to see—how are you again?'

Ron's ears had turned bright red again. After glancing at Krum's invitation as if he did not believe a word of it, he said, much too loudly, 'How come you're here?'

'Fleur invited me,' said Krum, eyebrows raised.

Ron muttered something and left with a sniggering Fred and George, while Hermione excused herself.

'It's good to see you again, Victor,' said Harri, smiling up at him.

'And you too, Harri,' Krum said, realising who Harri was. 'I could not believe it ven I saw that the little boy I versed in the Trivizard Tournament was actually a Valkyrie! Anyvay, I better get to my seat, ven I find out vhere it is.'

'It's that one over there,' pointed Harri. 'I saw it on Fred's list when you were talking with Ron,' she added when Krum gave her a look of surprise.

'I vill see you later,' smiled Krum, before walking over to his seat.

A moment later, Ron, Hermione and the Weasley twins quickly took their seats. A sense of jittery anticipation had filled the warm tent, the general murmuring broken by occasional spurts of excited laughter.

Mr and Mrs Weasley strolled up the aisle, smiling and waving at relatives: Mrs. Weasley was wearing a brand-new set of amethyst coloured robes with a matching hat. A moment later Bill and Charlie stood up at the front of the marquee, both wearing dress robes, with large white roses in their buttonholes; Fred wolf-whistled and there was an outbreak of giggling from the veela cousins. Then the crowd fell silent as music swelled from what seemed to be the golden balloons.

A great collective sigh issued from the assembled witches and wizards as Monsieur Delacour and Fleur came walking up the aisle, Fleur gliding, Monsieur Delacour bouncing and beaming. Fleur was wearing a very simple white dresses and seemed to be emitting a strong, silvery glow. While her radiance usually dimmed everyone else by comparison, today it beautified everyone it fell upon. Ginny and Gabrielle, both wearing golden dresses, looked even prettier than usual, and once Fleur had reached him, Bill did not look as though he had ever met Fenrir Greyback.

'Ladies and gentlemen,' said a slightly singsong voice, and with a slight shock, Harri saw the same small, tufty-haired wizard who had presided at Albus' funeral, now standing in front of Bill and Fleur. Harri, quickly glanced at her grandmother, and saw that her eyes were fixed rather intently on the couple rather than the priest. 'We are gathered here today to celebrate the union of two faithful souls ...'

'Yes, my tiara sets off the whole thing nicely, said Muriel in a rather carrying whisper. 'But I must say, Ginevra's dress is far too low cut.'

'"Do you, William Arthur, take Fleur Isabelle...?'

In the front row, Mrs. Weasley and Madame Delacour were both sobbing quietly into scraps of lace. Trumpet like sounds from the back of the marquee told everyone that Hagrid had taken out one of his own tablecloth-sized handkerchiefs.

'... then I declare you bonded for life.'

The tufty-haired wizard waved his wand high over the heads of Bill and Fleur and a shower of silver stars fell upon them, spiralling around their now entwined figures. As Fred and George led a round of applause, the golden balloons overhead burst: Birds of paradise and tiny golden bells flew and floated out of them, adding their songs and chimes to the din.

'Ladies and gentlemen!' called the tuft-haired wizard. 'If you would please stand up!'

They all did so, Auntie Muriel grumbling audibly; he waved his wand again. The seats on which they had been sitting rose gracefully into the air as the canvas walls of the marquee vanished, so that they stood beneath a canopy supported by golden poles, with a glorious view of the sunlit orchard and surrounding countryside.

Next, a pool of molten gold spread from the centre of the tent to form a gleaming dance floor; the hovering chairs groped themselves around small white-clothed tables, which all floated gracefully back to earth around it, and the golden-jacketed hand trooped toward a podium.

Harri quickly went over to Ron and Hermione.

'Doesn't she look beautiful,' Hermione said to Harri.

'Yeah, see does. I hope I look as lovely as her on my wedding day,' sighed Harri.

'What are you talking about, you look lovely all the time,' muttered Ron, glancing around: Harri felt sure that he was keeping an eye out for Krum.

Moments later, Luna joined them and they just stood around talking since most of the tables were already occupied.

The band had begun to play. Bill and Fleur took to the dance floor first, to great applause; after a while, Mr Weasley led Madame Delacour onto the floor, followed by Mrs Weasley and Fleur's father.

'"I like this song,' said Luna, swaying in time to the waltz-like tune, and a few seconds later she stood up and glided onto the dance floor, where she revolved on the spot, quite alone, eyes closed and waving her arms.

'She's great, isn't she?' said Ron admiringly. 'Always good value.'

But the smile vanished from his face at once: Viktor Krum had joined them. Hermione looked pleasurably flustered, but this time Krum had not come to compliment her.

With a scowl on his face he said, 'Who is that man in the yellow?'

'That's Xenophilius Lovegood, he's the father of a friend of ours,' said Ron. His pugnacious tone indicated that they were not about to laugh at Xenophilius, despite the clear provocation. 'Come and dance,' he added abruptly to Hermione.

She looked taken aback, but pleased too, and got up. They vanished together into the growing throng on the dance floor.

'Ah, they are together now?' asked Krum, momentarily distracted.

'One might say that,' answered Harri. She was sure that they would get together soon.

'Harri —you know this man Lovegood vell?'

'No, I only met him today. Why?'

Krum glowered over the top of his drink, watching Xenophilius, who was chatting to several warlocks on the other side of the dance floor.

'Because,' said Krum, 'if he was not a guest of Fleur's, I would duel him here and now, for vearing that filthy sign upon his chest.'

'Sign?' Frowned Harri, looking at Xenophilius too. A strange triangular eye was gleaming on his chest. 'Why? What's wrong with it?'

'Grindelvald. That is Grindelvald's sign.'

'Grindelwald...the Dark wizard my grandfather defeated?'

'Exactly.'

Krum's jaw muscles worked as if he were chewing, then he says, 'Grindelvald killed many people, my grandfather, for instance. Of course, he vos never poverful in this country, they said he feared Dumbledore—and rightly, seeing how he vos finished. But this —' he pointed a finger a Xenophilius '- this is his symbol, recognized it at vunce: Grindelvald carved it into a vall at Durmstrang ver he vos a pupil there. Some idiots copied it into their books and clothes, thinking to shock, make themselves impressive—until those of us who had lost family members to Grindelvald taught them better.'

Krum cracked his knuckles menacingly and glowered at Xenophilius.

Harri felt perplexed. It seemed incredibly unlikely that Luna's father was a supporter of the Dark Arts, and nobody else in the tent seemed to have recognized the triangular, rune-like shape.

'Are you—er—quite sure it's Grindelwald's—?'

'I am not mistaken,' said Krum coldly. 'I valked past that sign for several years, I know it vell.'

'Well, there's a chance,' said Harri, 'that Xenophilius doesn't actually know what the symbol means. The Lovegoods are quite...unusual. He could easily have picked it up somewhere and think it's a cross section of the head of a Crumple-Horned Snorkack or something.'

'The cross section of a vot?'

'Well, I don't know what they are, but apparently he and his daughter go on holiday looking for them...That's his daughter,' she said, pointing at Luna, who was still dancing alone, waving her arms around her head like someone attempting to beat off midges.

'Vy is she doing that?' asked Krum.

'Probably trying to get rid of a Wrackspurt,' said Harry, who recognized the symptoms.

Krum did not seem to know whether or not Harri was making fun of him. He drew his wand from inside his robes and tapped it menacingly on his thigh; sparks flew out of the end.

'Gregorovitch!' said Harri loudly - during the first week of the holidays, Harri accidently saw Voldemort's thoughts and saw that he was after someone named Gregorovitch - , Krum started, but Harri was too excited to care; the memory came back to him at the sight of Krum's wand: Ollivander taking it and examining it carefully before the Triwizard Tournament.

'Vot about him?' asked Krum suspiciously.

'He's a wandmaker!'

'I know that,' said Krum.

'He made your wand! That's why I thought—Quidditch—'

'Vat are you on about, Harri?' Asked a bewildered Krum.

'Where is Gregorovitch these days?' Harri asked urgently.

Krum looked puzzled.

'He retired several years ago. I vos one of the last to purchase a Gregorovitch vand. They are the best—although I know, of course, that you Britons set much store by Ollivander.'

Harri did not answer. She pretended to watch the dancers, like Krum, but she was thinking hard.

'This girl is very nice-looking,' Krum said, recalling Harri to her surroundings. Krum was pointing at Ginny, who had just joined Luna.

'That's Ron's sister,' Harri said warningly.

"Yeah," said Harry, suddenly irritated, "and she's seeing someone.

Krum grunted.

'Vot,' he said, draining his goblet, 'is the point of being an international Quidditch player if all the good-looking girls are taken?'

'I guess you're just not looking in the right places,' smiled Harri, watching as Ron and Hermione danced around the room. Her smile slowly disappeared as she remembered the times she danced with Draco. She started thinking of where he currently was and if he was all right.

'So, vould you like to dance, Harri?' Asked Krum, noticing her face begin to drop.

'Sure, why not?' Harri smiled, accepting his hand and walking over to the dance floor.

As the evening drew in, and moths began to swoop under the canopy, now lit with floating golden lanterns, the revelry became more and more uncontained. Freda and George had long since disappeared into the darkness with a pair of Fleur's cousins; Charlie, Hagrid, and a squat wizard in a purple porkpie hat were singing 'Odo the Hero" in a corner.

However, soon all the joy of the wedding stopped as something large and silver came falling through the canopy over the dance floor. Graceful and gleaming, the lynx landed lightly in the middle of the astonished dancers. Heads turned, as those nearest it froze absurdly in mid-dance. Then the Patronus' mouth opened wide and it spoke in the loud, deep, slow voice of Kingsley Shacklebolt.

'_The Ministry has fallen. Scrimgeour is dead. They are coming._'

Harri immediately drew her wand and hurried over to Ron and Hermione. During which time many people were only just realizing that something strange had happened; heads were still turning toward the silver cat as it vanished. Silence spread outward in cold ripples from the place where the Patronus had landed. Then somebody screamed and guests started sprinting in all directions; many were Disapparating; the protective enchantments around the Burrow had broken.

Harri, Ron and Hermione didn't stay to see what happened next for they all knew that it was time to leave and find the Horcruxes. Hermione took both their hands and Apparated them away.

'Where are we?' Asked Ron.

They were on some street surrounded by people. Many kept throwing Ron weird looks due to his dress robes.

'Tottenham Court Road,' panted Hermione. 'Walk, just walk, we need to find somewhere for you to change.'

They half walked, half ran up the wide dark street thronged with late-night revellers and lined with closed shops, stars twinkling above them. A double-decker bus rumbled by and a group of merry pub-goers ogled them as they passed.

'Hermione, I haven't got anything to change into,' Ron told her, as a young woman burst into raucous giggles at the sight of him.

'"It's okay, I've got clothes for you,' said Hermione, 'Just try and act naturally until—this will do.'

She led them down a side street, then into the shelter of a shadowy alleyway.

'When you say you've got clothes...' said Ron, frowning at Hermione, who was carrying nothing except her small beaded handbag, in which she was now rummaging.

'Yes, they're here,' said Hermione, and to Ron's utter astonishment, she pulled out a pair of jeans, a sweatshirt, and some maroon socks.

'How the ruddy hell—?'

'Undetectable Extension Charm, I take it?' Asked Harri. Hermione nodded.

'Tricky, but I think I've done it okay; anyway, I managed to fit everything we need in here.' She gave the fragile-looking bag a little shake and it echoed like a cargo hold as a number of heavy objects rolled around inside it. 'Oh, damn, that'll be the books,' she said, peering into it, 'and I had them all stacked by subject...Ron, hurry up and change...'

'I thought so. I've done the same with my bag,' said Harri as Ron stripped off his robes. 'Speaking of which, Grandfather's will was read out and he each left you something.'

'What?' Said Hermione. Why would he leave us something? What about Neville and the others?'

'No, just you two,' said Harri, rummaging around in her bag. 'Here,' she handed a book to Hermione and something that looked like a silver cigarette lighter to Ron. 'In his will, Grandfather said, that he leaves his Deluminator, in the hope that Ron will remember him when he uses it.' Harri said as Ron examined it, accidently turning off all the lights before hurriedly putting them on again. 'Grandfather designed it himself. It has no equal.' She then turned to her Hermione, 'That's his old copy of _The Tales of Beedle the Bard_. He hoped that you would find it entertaining and instructive. I think he was only person to own that book written in runes.'

Hermione smiled, tears glimmering in her eyes as she hugged the book.

'Come on, I think we ought to keep moving,' said Hermione, pulling herself back together, now that Ron was dressed.

They moved back up the side street and onto the main road again, where a group of men on the opposite side was singing and weaving across the pavement.

'Just as a matter of interest, why Tottenham Court Road?' Ron asked Hermione.

'I've no idea, it just popped into my head, but I'm sure we're safer out in the Muggle world, it's not where they'll expect us to be.'

'True,' said Ron, looking around, 'but don't you feel a bit—exposed?'

'Where else is there?' asked Hermione, cringing as the men on the other side of the road started wolf-whistling at her and Harri. 'We can hardly book rooms at the Leaky Cauldron, can we? And Grimmauld Place is out if Severus -' Hermione looked nervously at Harri, '- can get in there, though Sirius has been living in there as a secret keeper so it may be safe...though, I suppose we could try my parents' home, though I think there's a chance they might check there...Oh, I wish they'd shut up!'

'All right, darlings?' the drunkest of the men on the other pavement was yelling. 'Fancy a drink? Ditch ginger and come and have a pint!'

'I can make them shut up in a jiffy,' Harri smiled innocently, cracking her knuckles.

'No, you won't Harri,' Hermione said firmly. 'Let's sit down somewhere,' she added hastily as Ron opened his mouth to shout back across the road. 'Look, this will do, in here!'

It was a small and shabby all-night cafe. A light layer of grease lay on all the Formica-topped tables, but it was at least empty.

Harri slipped into a booth first and Ron sat next to her opposite Hermione, who had her back to the entrance and did not like it: She glanced over her shoulder so frequently she appeared to have a twitch. Harri did not like being stationary; walking had given the illusion that they had a goal.

After a minute or two, Ron said, 'You know, we're not far from the Leaky Cauldron here, it's only in Charing Cross—'

'Ron, we can't!' said Hermione at once.

'Not to stay there, but to find out what's going on!'

'We know what's going on! Voldemort's taken over the Ministry, what else do we need to know?'

'Okay, okay, it was just an idea!'

They relapsed into a prickly silence. The gum-chewing waitress shuffled over and Hermione ordered three cappuccinos as a pair of burly workmen entered the cafe and squeezed into the next booth.

Hermione dropped her voice to a whisper.

'I say we find a quiet place to Disapparate and head for the countryside. Once we're there, we could send a message to the Order.'

'Can either of you do that talking Patronus thing, then?' asked Ron, looking between the two girls.

Harri shrugged, 'Never tried it.'

'I've been practicing and I think so,' said Hermione.

'Well, as long as it doesn't get them into trouble, though they might've been arrested already. God, that's revolting,' Ron added after one sip of the foamy, greyish coffee. Harri was surprised that he had been game enough to try it.

The waitress had heard; she shot Ron a nasty look as she shuffled off to take the new customers' orders. The larger of the two workmen, who was blond and quite huge, now that Harri came to look at him, waved her away. She stared, affronted.

'Let's get going, then, I don't want to drink this muck,' said Ron. 'Hermione, have you got Muggle money to pay for this?'

'Yes, I took out all my Building Society savings before I came to the Burrow. I'll bet all the change is at the bottom,' sighed Hermione, reaching for her beaded bag.

The two workmen made identical movements, and Harri mirrored them without conscious thought: All three of them drew their wands. Ron, a few seconds late in realizing what was going on, lunged across the table, pushing Hermione sideways onto her bench. The force of the Death Eaters' spells shattered the tiled wall where Ron's head had just been.

'Stupefy!' Yelled Harri.

The great blond Death Eater was hit in the face by a jet of red light: He slumped sideways, unconscious. His companion fired a spell at Harri making shining black ropes fly from his wand-tip to bound Harri head to toe, but Harri was too fast for him, and was able to get out of the way as the waitress screamed and ran for the door.

Harri sent another Stunning Spell at the Death Eater but the spell missed, rebounded on the window, and hit the waitress, who collapsed in front of the door.

'Expulso!' bellowed the Death Eater, and the table behind which Harri was standing blew up: The force of the explosion slammed her into the wall and she felt her wand leave her hand.

'Petrificus Totalus!' screamed Hermione from out of sight, and the Death Eater fell forward like a statue to land with a crunching thud on the mess of broken china, table, and coffee.

Hermione crawled out from underneath the bench, shaking bits of glass ashtray out of her hair and trembling all over. Harri picked up her wand and climbed over all the debris to where the large blond Death Eater was sprawled across the bench.

'I should've recognized him, he was there the night Grandfather died,' she said bitterly. She turned over the darker Death Eater with his foot; the man's eyes moved rapidly between the furious Harri, and the shaken Ron and Hermione.

'That's Dolohov,' said Ron. 'I recognize him from the old wanted posters. I think the big one's Thorfinn Rowle.'

'Never mind what they're called!' said Hermione a little hysterically. 'How did they find us? What are we going to do?'

'Lock the door,' ordered Harri, 'and Ron, turn out the lights.'

Harri looked down at the paralysed Dolohov, thinking fast as the lock clicked and Ron used the Deluminator to plunge the cafe into darkness. Harri could hear the men who had jeered at Hermione and her earlier, yelling at another girl in the distance. She wished Hermione had let her thump them one to stop them from harassing every passing female.

'What are we going to do with them?' Ron whispered to Harri through the dark; then, even more quietly, 'Kill them? They'd kill us. They had a good go just now.'

Hermione shuddered and took a step backward. Harri shook her head.

'We just need to wipe their memories,' Harri said firmly. 'It's better like that, it'll throw them off the scent. If we killed them it'd be obvious we were here.'

'You're the boss,' said Ron, sounding profoundly relieved.

'But I've never down a Memory Charm.' Admitted Harri, looking over at Hermione.

'Nor have I,' said Hermione, 'but I know the theory.'

She took a deep, calming breath, then pointed her wand at Dolohov's forehead and said, 'Obliviate.'

At once, Dolohov's eyes became unfocused and dreamy.

'Brilliant!" said Harri, clapping her on the back. 'Take care of the other one and the waitress while Ron and I clear up.'

'Clear up?' said Ron, looking around at the partly destroyed cafe. 'Why?'

'Don't you think they might wonder what's happened if they wake up and find themselves in a place that looks like it's just been bombed?'

'Oh right, yeah...'

Ron struggled for a moment before managing to extract his wand from his pocket.

'It's no wonder I can't get it out, Hermione, you packed my old jeans, they're tight.'

'Oh, I'm so sorry,' hissed Hermione, and as she dragged the waitress out of sight of the windows, Harri heard her mutter a suggestion as to where Ron could stick his wand instead.

Once the cafe was restored to its previous condition, they heaved the Death Eaters back into their booth and propped them up facing each other.

'But how did they find us?' Hermione asked, looking from one inert man to the other. 'How did they know where we were?'

She turned to Harri.

'You—you don't think you've still got your Trace on you, do you, Harri?'

'She can't have,' said Ron. 'The Trace breaks at seventeen, that's Wizarding law, you can't put it on an adult.'

'As far as you know,' said Hermione. 'What if the Death Eaters have found a way to put it on a seventeen-year-old?'

'But Harri hasn't been near a Death Eater in the last twenty-four hours. Who's supposed to have put a Trace back on her?'

Hermione did not reply.

'I don't think I have the Trace on me, but this might have some sort of tracking device or something in it,' sighed Harri, pulling the ruby bracelet Voldemort had given her out of her bag. 'I can't believe I never thought about that.'

'It's not your fault Harri, you trusted him,' Hermione said gently.

Harri muttered something incomprehensible as she put the bracelet on the table next to her.

'Let's go to Grimmauld Place,' sighed Harri. 'Speak to Sirius and we can stay there where it is safe. Sirius is the secret keeper, so it's safe.

'But wouldn't he have told, er, Severus?' Hermione said hesitantly again.

'He wouldn't be stupid enough to try and break into there,' growled Harri. 'Besides, Ron's dad said they've put up jinxes against him—and even if they haven't worked, so what? I swear, I'd like nothing better than to meet my dear uncle!'

'But—'

'Hermione, where else is there? It's the best chance we've got. Severus is only one Death Eater. And if, by some unknown reason, I've still got the Trace on me, we'll have whole crowds of them on us wherever else we go.' Harri said pointedly. 'If we go there, we can see what happened at the wedding...seeing as it's still the Orders headquarters.'

Hermione could not argue with that, though she looked as if she would have liked to.

While she unlocked the cafe door, Ron clicked the Deluminator to release the cafe's light. Then, on Harri's count of three, they reversed the spells upon their three victims, and before the waitress or either of the Death Eaters could do more than stir sleepily, Harri, Ron and Hermione had turned on the spot and vanished into the compressing darkness once more.

Seconds they were now standing in the middle of a familiar small and shabby square. Tall, dilapidated houses looked down on them from every side. Number twelve was visible to them, for they had been told of its existence by Sirius, its Secret-Keeper, and they rushed toward it, checking every few yards that they were not being followed or observed. They raced up the stone steps, and Harri tapped the front door once with her wand. They heard a series of metallic clicks and the clatter of a chain, then the door swung open with a creak and they hurried over the threshold.

As Harry closed the door behind them, the old-fashioned gas lamps sprang into life, casting flickering light along the length of the hallway. It looked just as Harri remembered it: eerie, cobwebbed, the outlines of the house-elf heads on the wall throwing odd shadows up the staircase. Long dark curtains concealed the portrait of Sirius's mother.

'So where are these jinxes they put up against Snape?' Harry asked, not wanting to accidently set one off.

'Maybe they're only activated if he shows up?' suggested Ron.

'Maybe,' muttered Harri, taking a step forward.

'Severus Dumbledore?'

Mad-Eye Moody's voice whispered out of the darkness, making all three of them jump back in fright.

'We're not Severus!' croaked Harry, before something whooshed over her like cold air and her tongue curled backward on itself, making it impossible to speak. Before she had time to feel inside her mouth, however, her tongue had unravelled again.

The other two seemed to have experienced the same unpleasant sensation. Ron was making retching noises; Hermione stammered,

'That m–must have b–been the T–Tongue-Tying Curse Mad-Eye set up for Severus!'

Gingerly Harri took another step forward. Something shifted in the shadows at the end of the hall, and before any of them could say another word, a figure had risen up out of the carpet, tall, dust-coloured, and terrible; Hermione screamed and so did Mrs. Black, her curtains flying open; the gray figure was gliding toward them, faster and faster, its waist-length hair and beard streaming behind it, its face sunken, fleshless, with empty eye sockets: Horribly familiar, dreadfully altered, it raised a wasted arm, pointing at Harri.

Next minute the figure exploded in a great cloud of dust, and Sirius, Remus and a number of the Order members came hurrying towards them.

'Harri,' said a relieved Sirius, holding her tightly in his arms. 'Thank goodness you are all right.'

Harri didn't say anything, instead she looked around to see Hermione crouched on the floor by the door with her arms over her head, with Remus, kneeling next to her, telling her that everything was all right. Ron was shaking madly.

Dust swirled around Harri and the others like mist, catching the blue gaslight, as Mrs. Black continued to scream.

'Mudbloods, filth, stains of dishonour, taint of shame on the house of my fathers'—'

'SHUT UP!' Sirius bellowed, directing his wand at her, and with a bang and a burst of red sparks, the curtains swung shut again, silencing her, before wrapping his arms around Harri once more.

'That...that was...' Hermione whimpered, as Ron helped her to her feet.

'Yeah,' breathed Harri, 'but it wasn't really him, was it? Just something to scare Severus.' She added, looking up into Sirius' face.

'Yeah, Mad-Eye's work,' said Sirius, leading them into the kitchen.

The moment Harri stepped foot into the kitchen, she found herself being smothering in her grandmother's arms.

'Thank God,' she cried, holding Harri tightly. 'I thought I had lost you too.'

'I am sorry, Grandmother,' whispered Harri, as Mrs Weasley embraced Ron and Hermione.

Next minute Harri had gave a cry of pain as her scar burned painfully as something flashed across her mind like a bright light on water. She saw a large shadow and felt a fury that was not her own pound through her body, violent and brief as an electric shock.

'Harri, what's wrong?' Asked a startled Minerva.

'It's just - I just felt anger—he's really angry—'

Harri felt confused, and Hermione did not help as she said in a frightened voice, 'Your scar, again? But what's going on? I thought that connection had closed!'

'It did, for a while,' muttered Harri; her scar was still painful, which made it hard to concentrate. 'I–I think it's started opening again whenever he loses control, that's how it used to—'

'Then you've got to close your mind!' Growled Moody.

'Don't you think I know that?' Snapped Harri as the pain in her scar was reaching a peak, burning as it had back in the garden of Acacia when she learnt about Gregorovitch. Then, before she knew it she fell to the floor, and in an explosion of agony, she felt the rage that did not belong to her possess her soul, and saw a long room lit only by firelight, and the giant blond Death Eater on the floor, screaming and writhing, and a slighter figure standing over him, wand outstretched, while Harri spoke in a high, cold, merciless voice.

'More, Rowle, or shall we end it and feed you to Nagini? Lord Voldemort is not sure that he will forgive this time...You called me back for this, to tell me that my niece has escaped again? Draco, give Rowle another taste of our displeasure...Do it, or feel my wrath yourself!'

A log fell in the fire: Flames reared, their light darting across a terrified, pointed white face, before Harri looked down at her long spidery white hand and looked as an Indian ruby bracelet. The bracelet she had left in the Muggle Cafe.

With a sense of emerging from deep water, Harri drew heaving breaths and opened her eyes. She was laying in Sirius' arms, with most of the Order looking at her worriedly. She closed her eyes, and a tear slid out. Draco's gaunt, petrified face seemed burned on the inside of her eyes. She felt sickened by what she had seen, by the use to which Draco was now being put by Voldemort.

* * *

><p><strong>Facebook page:<strong> Link on profile  
><strong>Written:<strong> 22 November 2011


	2. The Locket

**CHAPTER TWO: THE LOCKET**

Harri, Ron and Hermione thought it would be best if they remained at Grimmauld Place with the Order until they found out where they should start looking for the Horcruxes. The only problem with that - besides the fact that Moody forced Harri to learn Occlumency everyday and even when they were having a lesson he would try to catch unawares - is they had the Order trying to figure out what the trio was planning. They knew something was up since Hermione and Harri were always carrying their bags around, speaking in hushed voices and if someone ever came near them, they would stop talking abruptly. This made it difficult to concentrate on where to find the four remaining Horcruxes and to figure out whether the locket had in fact been destroyed - Harri had found out that someone by the initials of R.A.B had taken the real Horcrux. They still had no leads on whom R.A.B was, and in the end, Harri got up her courage to ask the Order over dinner one night.

'Um, do any of you know who someone with the initials R.A.B could be?' Harri asked casually, though her heart was racing. She noticed Hermione and Ron look up from their dinner.

'The only person I know with those initials is my brother,' answered a suspicious Sirius.

'Your brother? The one that was a Death Eater?'

'I only had one brother, Harri, and yes he was a Death Eater.'

'What was his name?'

'Regulus Arcturus. Why are you so interested in this?'

'Can I have a look around his room?' Harri asked eagerly, getting to her feet followed by Hermione and Ron.

'I guess so but...'

The trio had left the room.

The trio found Regulus' room all right and quickly moved over the threshold together, gazing around. The Slytherin colours of emerald and silver were everywhere, draping the bead, the walls, and the windows. The Black family crest was painstakingly painted over the bed, along with its motto, Toujours Pur. Beneath this was a collection of yellow newspaper cuttings, all stuck together to make a ragged collage. Hermione crossed the room to examine them.

'They're all about Voldemort,' she said. 'Regulus seems to have been a fan for a few years before he joined the Death Eaters...'

A little puff of dust rose from the bedcovers as she sat down to read the clippings. Harri, meanwhile, had noticed another photograph: a Hogwarts Quidditch team was smiling and waving out of the frame. She moved closer and saw the snakes emblazoned on their chests: Slytherins. Regulus was instantly recognizable as the boy sitting in the middle of the front row: He had the same dark hair and slightly haughty look of his brother, though he was smaller, slighter, and rather less handsome than Sirius had been.

'He played Seeker,' said Harri.

'What?' said Hermione vaguely; she was still immersed in Voldemort's press clippings.

'He is sitting in the middle of the front row, that's where the Seeker...Never mind,' said Harri, realising that nobody was listening.

Ron was on his hands and knees, searching under the wardrobe. Harri looked around the room for likely hiding places and approached the desk, noticing that somebody had searched before them. The drawers' contents had been turned over recently, the dust disturbed, but there was nothing of value there: old quills, out-of-date textbooks that bore evidence of being roughly handled, a recently smashed ink bottle, its sticky residue covering the contents of the drawer.

'There's an easier way,' said Hermione as Harri wiped her inky fingers on her jeans, hoping Mrs Weasley wouldn't find out. She raised her wand and said, 'Accio Locket!'

Nothing happened. Ron, who had been searching the folds of the faded curtains, looked disappointed.

'Is that it, then? It's not here?'

'Oh, it could still be here, but under counter-enchantments,' said Hermione. "Charms to prevent it from being summoned magically, you know.'

'Like Voldemort put on the stone basin in the cave,' said Harri, remembering how she had been unable to Summon the fake locket.

'How are we supposed to find it then?' asked Ron.

'We search manually,' said Hermione.

'That's a good idea,' said Ron, rolling his eyes, and he resumed his examination of the curtains.

They combed every inch of the room for more than an hour, but were forced, finally, to conclude that the locket was not there.

'It could be somewhere else in the house, though,' said Hermione in a rallying tone as they walked back downstairs. As Harri and Ron had become more discouraged, she seemed to have become more determined. 'Whether he'd manage to destroy it or not, he'd want to keep it hidden from Voldemort, wouldn't he? Remember all those awful things we had to get rid of when we were here last time? That clock that shot bolts at everyone and those old robes that tried to strangle Ron; Regulus might have put them there to protect the locket's hiding place, even though we didn't realise it at...at...'

Harri and Ron looked at her. She was standing with one foot in midair, with the dumbstruck look of one who had just been Obliviated: her eyes had even drifted out of focus.

'...at the time,' she finished in a whisper.

'Something wrong?' asked Ron.

'There was a locket. In the cabinet in the drawing room. Nobody could open it. And we...we...'

Harri felt as though a brick had slid down through her chest into her stomach. She remembered. She had even handled the thing as they passed it around, each trying in turn to pry it open. It had been tossed into a sack of rubbish, along with the snuffbox of Wartcap powder and the music box that had made everyone sleepy.

'Maybe Sirius went through the stuff again and decided to keep a few of its items,' Harri said, though she highly doubted it.

They quickly hurried back into the kitchen were the Order was quietly talking.

'Sirius!' Harri said, much more loudly than she had intended, as she hurried over to him.

'Are you all right? You didn't find any nasty creatures in his room did you?' Sirius asked quickly.

'What? No, we need to know - remember that locket that none of us could open back when we were cleaning out this place?'

'Yes,' Sirius said slowly.

'You wouldn't by some miracle still have it?' Harri asked, crossing her fingers and biting her lower lip.

'No, it got chucked out with the rest of the junk. Why do you ask?'

Harri didn't answer, instead Ron, Hermione and Harri exchanged disappointed looks.

'Kreacher nicked loads of things back from us,' Harri said suddenly. 'So there's a slim chance that he might have it!'

'You're right!' exclaimed Hermione, hurrying over to Kreacher's cupboard, while the Order watched on, wondering what was actually going on and what was so important about the locket they seeked.

Hermione knocked on the cupboard. A groan was heard from within and Kreacher came out.

'Why was the Mudblood knocking on Kreacher's -'

'Kreacher! What did I say about using that word?' roared Sirius.

'Not to, Master,' replied Kreacher with a bow. 'If only Master's goddaughter hadn't saved him, then Kreacher could be allow with his poor mistress...'

'Kreacher, I've got a question for you,' interrupted Harri, her heart beating rather fast as she looked down at the elf, who had looked up at her with surprise.

'And you must answer whatever she says truthfully,' added Sirius, before Harri could continue. 'Is that understood?'

'Yes Master,' grumbled Kreacher, before calling Sirius a whole bunch of names under his breath.

Once he had finished, and Remus had stopped Sirius from cursing the elf, Harri began.

'Two years ago,' said Harri, her heart now hammering against her ribs, 'there was a big gold locket in the drawing room upstairs. We threw it out. Did you steal it back?'

There was a moment's silence, during which Kreacher straightened up to look Harri full in the face. Then he said, 'Yes.'

'Where is it now?' asked Harri jubilantly as Ron and Hermione looked gleeful.

The Order exchanged looks.

Kreacher closed his eyes as though he could not bear to see their reactions to his next word.

'Gone.'

'Gone?' echoed Harri, elation floating out of her, 'What do you mean, it's gone?'

She looked back at Ron and Hermione. Had Mrs Weasley or Sirius decided to clean out Kreacher's cupboard?

The elf shivered, before answering.

'Mundungus Fletcher,' croaked the elf, his eyes still tight shut. 'Mundungus Fletcher stole it all; my Mistress's gloves, the Order of Merlin, First Class, the goblets with the family crest, and—and—' Kreacher was gulping for air: His hollow chest was rising and falling rapidly, then his eyes flew open and he uttered a bloodcurdling scream, startling everyone in the room. '—and the locket, Master Regulus's locket. Kreacher did wrong, Kreacher failed in his orders!'

Harri reacted instinctively: As Kreacher lunged for the poker standing in the grate, she launched herself upon the elf, flattening him. Hermione's scream mingled with Kreacher's but Harri bellowed louder than both of them: 'Kreacher, shut up!'

Then, to her surprise, as too everyone else in the room, Kreacher feel quiet. Harri slowly released him, and looked down at the sobbing creature.

Taking a deep breath, Harri continued in a softer tone, 'How do you know Mundungus Fletcher stole the locket?'

'Kreacher saw him!' gasped the elf as tears poured over his snout and into his mouth full of greying teeth. 'Kreacher saw him coming out of Kreacher's cupboard with his hands full of Kreacher's treasures. Kreacher told the sneak thief to stop, but Mundungus Fletcher laughed and r-ran...'

'You called the locket "Master Regulus's,"' said Harri. 'Why? Where did it come from? What did Regulus have to do with it? Kreacher, sit up and tell me everything you know about that locket, and everything Regulus had to do with it!'

The elf sat up, curled into a ball, placed his wet face between his knees, and began to rock backward and forward. When he spoke, his voice was muffled but quite distinct in the silent, echoing kitchen.

'Master Sirius ran away, good riddance, for he was a bad boy and broke my Mistress's heart with his lawless ways -," ('Sirius,' Remus said warningly as Sirius began to open his mouth looking angry) '- but Master Regulus had proper order; he knew what was due to the name of Black and the dignity of his pure blood. For years he talked of the Dark Lord, who was going to bring the wizards out of hiding to rule the Muggles and the Muggle-borns...and when he was sixteen years old, Master Regulus joined the Dark Lord. So proud, so proud, so happy to serve...And one day, a year after he joined, Master Regulus came down to the kitchen to see Kreacher. Master Regulus always liked Kreacher. And Master Regulus said...he said...' The old elf rocked faster than ever. '...he said that the Dark Lord required an elf.'

'Voldemort needed an elf?' Harri repeated, looking around at Ron and Hermione, who looked just as puzzled as she did. Even the forgotten Order members looked puzzled.

'Oh yes,' moaned Kreacher. 'And Master Regulus had volunteered Kreacher. It was an honour, said Master Regulus, an honour for him and for Kreacher, who must be sure to do whatever the Dark Lord ordered him to do...and then to c–come home.' Kreacher rocked still faster, his breath coming in sobs. 'So Kreacher went to the Dark Lord. The Dark Lord did not tell Kreacher what they were to do, but took Kreacher with him to a cave beside the sea. And beyond the cave was a cavern, and in the cavern was a great black lake . . . "

'Where there was a boat that sailed across the black lake full of Inferi to a small island at the centre where a stone basin full of a green potion stood on a pedestal,' finished Harri. Everyone, except Ron and Hermione, turned to look at her. How did she know the place that Kreacher was talking about? Especially one full of Inferi.

'Y-yes,' said a surprised Kreacher. 'The D–Dark Lord made Kreacher drink the potion...Kreacher drank, and as he drank he saw terrible things...Kreacher's insides burned...Kreacher cried for Master Regulus to save him, he cried for his Mistress Black, but the Dark Lord only laughed...He made Kreacher drink all the potion...He dropped a locket into the empty basin...He filled it with more potion. And then the Dark Lord sailed away, leaving Kreacher on the island...Kreacher needed water, he crawled to the island's edge and he drank from the black lake...and hands, dead hands, came out of the water and dragged Kreacher under the surface...'

'How did you get away?' Harri asked, and she was not surprised to hear himself whispering.

Kreacher raised his ugly head and looked Harri with his great, bloodshot eyes. 'Master Regulus told Kreacher to come back,' he said.

'I know—but how did you escape the Inferi?'

Kreacher did not seem to understand.

'Master Regulus told Kreacher to come back,' he repeated.

'I know, but—'

'Well, it's obvious, isn't it, Harri?' said Ron. 'He Disapparated!'

'Oh yeah, I forgot that elf magic was different to wizards magic,' muttered Harri. 'So what happened when you got back? What did Regulus say when you told him what happened?'

'Master Regulus was very worried, very worried,' croaked Kreacher. 'Master Regulus told Kreacher to stay hidden and not to leave the house. And then...it was a little while later...Master Regulus came to find Kreacher in his cupboard one night, and Master Regulus was strange, not as he usually was, disturbed in his mind, Kreacher could tell...and he asked Kreacher to take him to the cave, the cave where Kreacher had gone with the Dark Lord...'

'And he made you drink the poison?' said Harri, disgusted.

But Kreacher shook his head and wept. Hermione's hands leapt to her mouth: She seemed to have understood something.

'M—Master Regulus took from his pocket a locket like the one the Dark Lord had,' said Kreacher, tears pouring down either side of his snout-like nose. 'And he told Kreacher to take it and, when the basin was empty, to switch the lockets...' Kreacher's sobs came in great rasps now. ''And he order—Kreacher to leave—without him. And he told Kreacher—to go home—and never to tell my Mistress—what he had done—but to destroy—the first locket. And he drank—all the potion—and Kreacher swapped the lockets—and watched...as Master Regulus...was dragged beneath the ...and...'

Kreacher did not need to finish his sentence for Harri and everyone understood what had happened. Harri turned and looked at Sirius who was abnormally pale. He was staring at Kreacher, unblinkingly. Harri guessed that while he never got on with his brother, he still loved and cared for him. However, hearing how Regulus had died, must have come as a great shock to him.

'So you brought the locket home,' Harri said gently. She didn't want to cause the elf anymore pain, but she knew it was necessary to get the entire story and to find the real Horcrux. 'And you tried to destroy it?'

'Nothing Kreacher did made any mark upon it,' moaned the elf. 'Kreacher tried everything, everything he knew, but nothing, nothing would work... So many powerful spells upon the casing, Kreacher was sure the way to destroy it was to get inside it, but it would not open...Kreacher punished himself, he tried again, he punished himself, he tried again. Kreacher failed to obey orders, Kreacher could not destroy the locket! And his mistress was mad with grief, because Master Regulus had disappeared and Kreacher could not tell her what had happened, no, because Master Regulus had f–f–forbidden him to tell any of the f–f–family what happened in the c-cave...'

Kreacher began to sob so hard that there were no more coherent words. Tears flowed down Hermione's cheeks as she watched Kreacher. Even Ron, who was no fan of Kreacher's, looked troubled. Harri sat back on her heels and shook her head, trying to clear it.

'I don't understand you, Kreacher,' she said finally. 'Voldemort tried to kill you, Regulus died to bring Voldemort down, but you were still happy to betray Sirius to Voldemort? You were happy to go to Narcissa and Bellatrix, and pass information to Voldemort through them...'

'Harri, Kreacher doesn't think like that,' said Hermione, wiping her eyes on the back of her hand. 'He's a slave; house-elves are used to bad, even brutal treatment; what Voldemort did to Kreacher wasn't that far out of the common way. What do wizard wars mean to an elf like Kreacher? He's loyal to people who are kind to him, and Mrs. Black must have been, and Regulus certainly was, so he served them willingly and parroted their beliefs. I know what you're going to say,' she went on as Harri began to protest, 'that Regulus changed his mind...but he doesn't seem to have explained that to Kreacher, does he? And I think I know why. Kreacher and Regulus's family were all safest if they kept to the old pure-blood line. Regulus was trying to protect them all.'

'Sirius—'

'Sirius is horrible to Kreacher, Harri, and it's no good looking like that, you know it's true. Kreacher had been alone for such a long time when Sirius came to live here, and he was probably starving for a bit of affection. I'm sure "Miss Cissy" and "Miss Bella" were perfectly lovely to Kreacher when he turned up, so he did them a favour and told them everything they wanted to know. I've said all along that wizards would pay for how they treat house-elves. Well, Voldemort did...and so did Sirius. No offense Sirius,' Hermione said hurriedly, remembering that he was in the room.

'None taken. What you say is true,' croaked Sirius, still staring at the elf. He was still in shock.

'Kreacher,' said Harri after a while, 'when you feel up to it, please sit up.'

It was several minutes before Kreacher hiccupped himself into silence. Then he pushed himself into a sitting position again, rubbing his knuckles into his eyes like a small child.

'Kreacher, I need to ask you for a favour,' said Harri, surprising everyone in the room. Who asks house-elves for favours, besides Hermione?

'What favour?' Kreacher croaked suspiciously.

'Would you be able to go and find Mundungus Fletcher, and bring him here? We need to find out where the locket—where Master Regulus's locket is. It's really important. We want to finish the work Master Regulus started; we want to ensure that he didn't die in vain.'

Kreacher looked up at Harri.

'Find Mundungus Fletcher?' he croaked.

'And bring him here, to Grimmauld Place,' said Harri. 'Do you think you could do that for us?'

As Kreacher nodded and got to his feet, Harri pulled out the purse Hagrid had given her and took out the fake Horcrux, the substitute locket in which Regulus had placed the note to Voldemort.

'Kreacher, I would like you to have this,' she said gently, pressing the locket into the elf's small hand. 'This belonged to Regulus and I'm sure he'd want you to have it as a token of gratitude for what you—'

'Overkill, mate,' said Ron as the elf took one look at the locket, let out a howl of shock and misery, and threw himself back onto the ground.

It took them nearly half an hour to calm down Kreacher, who was so overcome to be presented with a Black family heirloom for his very own that he was too weak at the knees to stand properly. When finally he was able to totter a few steps, they all watched him tuck up the locket safely in his dirty blankets, in his cupboard, and assured him that they would make its protection their first priority while he was away. He then made two low bows to Harri and Ron, and even gave a funny little spasm in Hermione's direction that might have been an attempt at a respectful salute, before Disapparating with the usual loud crack.

After Harri's interrogation of Kreacher the Order began interrogating Hermione, Harri and Ron, but they refused to answer any of their questions. In the end, the Order gave up for the night, but Harri knew that they would attack when they least expected it. This meant that Harri concentrated more on her Occlumency so Moody would not find out.

Three days, they had to wait for Kreacher's return, during which time Voldemort had become desperate to get his hands on Harri. He had taken over the Daily Prophet, offering a reward if she was brought to him alive and well - she was surprised by the well part - and he had also ordered several Death Eaters to remain on guard outside Grimmauld Place. This meant that Order members had to Apparate on the top step to avoid detection. Due to Voldemort's influence at the Ministry of Magic, the Ministry was now accusing all muggle-borns of stealing magic.

Finally, on the third night, while the Order was having dinner, a deafening crack echoed around the kitchen. Right at the front of the kitchen was a mass of struggling limbs that had appeared out of thin air. Most of the Order drew their wands before putting them away as Kreacher disentangled himself and, bowing low to Harri, croaked, 'Kreacher has returned with the thief Mundungus Fletcher, Mistress Harri.'

The last bit of his sentence shocked Harri, but she decided to question him on it later when Mundungus scrambled up and pulled out his wand; Harri, however, was too quick for him.

'Expelliarmus!'

Mundungus's wand soared into the air, and Hermione caught it. Wild-eyed, Mundungus dived for the stairs: Ron rugby–tackled him, and Mundungus hit the stone floor with a muffled crunch.

'What?' he bellowed, writhing in his attempts to free himself from Ron's grip. 'Wha've I done? Setting a bleedin' 'ouse-elf on me, what are you playing at, wha've I done, lemme go, lemme go, or—"

'You're not in much of a position to make threats,' said Harri, walking over to him. When she stopped beside him and dropped to her knees, Mundungus stopped struggling and looked terrified. Ron got up, panting, and watched as Harri pointed her wand deliberately at Mundungus' nose.

Mundungus stank of stale sweat and tobacco smoke. His hair was matted and his robes stained.

'Kreacher apologizes for the delay in bringing the thief, Miss,' croaked the elf. 'Fletcher knows how to avoid capture, has many hidey-holes and accomplices. Nevertheless, Kreacher cornered the thief in the end.'

'You've done really well, Kreacher,' smiled Harri, and the elf bowed low, looking quite pleased with himself.

'Right, we've got a few questions for you,' Harri told Mundungus. 'When you cleaned out this house of anything valuable,' Harri began, but Mundungus interrupted her again.

'Sirius never cared about any of the junk—'

'That doesn't mean I appreciate being robbed,' interrupted Sirius, before there was the sound of pattering feet, a blaze of shining copper, an echoing clang, and a shriek of agony; Kreacher had taken a run at Mundungus and hit him over the head with a saucepan.

'Call 'im off, call 'im off, 'e should be locked up!' screamed Mundungus, cowering as Kreacher raised the heavy-bottomed pan again.

'Kreacher, no!' shouted Harri as she tried not to laugh.

Kreacher's thin arms trembled with the weight of the pan, still held aloft.

'Perhaps just one more, Miss, for luck?'

Ron and Sirius laughed laughed. Sirius' laughter startled Kreacher.

'We need him conscious, Kreacher, but if he needs persuading, you can do the honours,' smiled Harri.

'Thank you very much, Miss,' said Kreacher with a bow, and he retreated a short distance, his great pale eyes still fixed upon Sirius.

'When you stripped this house of all the valuables you could find,' Harri began again, 'you took a bunch of stuff from the kitchen cupboard. There was a locket there. What did you do with it?'

'Why?' asked Mundungus, 'Is it valuable?'

'You've still got it!' cried Hermione.

'No, he hasn't,' said Ron shrewdly. 'He's wondering whether he should have asked more money for it.'

'More?' said Mundungus. 'That wouldn't have been effing difficult ...bleedin' gave it away, di'n' I? No choice.'

'What do you mean?'

'I was selling in Diagon Alley, and she come up to me and asks if I've got a license for trading in magical artefacts. Bleedin' snoop. She was gonna fine me, but she took a fancy to the locket an' told me she'd take it and let me off this time, and to fink meself lucky.'

'Who was this woman?' asked Harri.

'I dunno, some Ministry hag.'

'There are a lot of them though,' said Harri. 'Can you describe her?'

Mundungus considered for a moment, brow wrinkled.

'Little woman. Bow on top of her head.' he frowned, then added, 'Looked like a toad.'

'Umbridge,' muttered a bitter Harri, before leaving the room with Ron and Hermione. Everyone else in the room just looked at each other. What had just happened?

* * *

><p>As August wore on, Harri, Ron and Hermione took turns to sneak out of Grimmauld Place to work out a plan on how they would get the locket of Umbridge. Day after day, one of them would sit outside the Ministry, watching the workers coming and leaving, while the other two stayed and covered for them, with the help of Kreacher, who had taken a liking to Harri. Harri found out that Kreacher had accepted her as his Mistress due to her being Sirius' goddaughter and his argument was she was as good as his Master's heir so he would listen to her. Sirius' behaviour to the elf had also changed and the two of them started getting along.<p>

Two days before the first of September, Harri walked into the kitchen and saw that most of the Order members were unhappy, especially those that taught at Hogwarts.

'What's wrong?' she asked.

Wordlessly, Flitwick handed her the Daily Prophet and the front heading seemed to jump out at her.

_SEVERUS DUMBLEDORE CONFIRMED AS HOGWARTS HEADMASTER_

'You've got to be kidding!' exclaimed Harri.

'Who's kidding who?' asked Ron as he walked into the kitchen with Hermione and Ginny.

Harri didn't answer, instead she read the article out to them.

'_Severus Dumbledore, long-standing Potions master at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and son to Albus Dumbledore, was today appointed headmaster in the most important of several staffing changes at the ancient school. Following the resignation of the previous Muggle Studies teacher, Alecto Carrows will take over the post while her brother, Amycus, fills the position of Defence Against the Dark Arts professor_.'

'Merlin's pants!' Hermione shrieked, making everyone jump. She hurtled from the room shouting as she went, 'I'll be back in a minute!'

'"Merlin's pants'?"' repeated Ron, looking amused. 'She must be upset.'

'How are you all going to handle this?' asked Harri, looking from her grandmother, to Aurora, to Flitwick and to the other teachers.

'We'll just have to put up with him. That way we can keep an eye on the children, but its going to be harder keeping an eye on you.' said Aurora. 'However, Minerva believes, and we all agree with her, that it will be safer for you to remain here at the Headquarters and be home schooled.'

'I don't have a problem with that,' shrugged Harri. She wasn't going to go to Hogwarts anyway.

'Really?' said Sirius, raising his eyebrows in disbelief.

'Uh huh,' said Harri as Hermione came back into the room.

'And what in the name of Merlin's most baggy Y Fronts was that about?' Ron asked.

'I'll explain later,' panted Hermione, helping herself to some toast.

That night, Harri quietly snuck upstairs into Ron's room. Hermione was already in there waiting for her too.

'So, Harri, what happened today?' whispered Ron as Harri sat down on his bed.

'Nothing,' said Harri. 'Watched the Ministry entrance for seven hours. No sign of her. Saw you dad, though, Ron.'

'Dad always told us most Ministry people use the Floo Network to get to work,' Ron said. 'That's why we haven't seen Umbridge, she'd never walk, she'd think she's too important.'

'And what about that funny old witch and that little wizard in the navy robes?' Hermione asked.

'Oh yeah, the bloke from Magical Maintenance,' said Ron.

'How do you know he works for Magical Maintenance?' Hermione asked.

'Dad said everyone from Magical Maintenance wears navy blue robes.'

'But you never told us that!'

Hermione pulled towards her the sheaf of notes and maps that she and Ron had been examining when Harri had entered the room.

'There's nothing in here about navy blue robes, nothing!' she said, flipping feverishly through the pages.

'Well, does it really matter?'

'Ron, it all matters! If we're going to get into the Ministry and not give ourselves away when they're bound to be on the lookout for intruders, every little detail matters! We've been over and over this, I mean, what's the point of all these reconnaissance trips if you aren't even bothering to tell us—'

'Blimey, Hermione, I forget one little thing—'

'You do realise, don't you, that there's probably no more dangerous place in the whole world for us to be right now than the Ministry of—'

'I think we should do it tomorrow,' interrupted Harri.

Hermione stopped dead, her jaw hanging.

'Tomorrow?' repeated Hermione. 'You cannot be serious, Harri?'

'I am,' said Harri. 'I don't think we're going to be much better prepared than we are now even if we skulk around the Ministry entrance for another month. The longer we put it off, the farther away that locket could be. There's already a good chance Umbridge has chucked it away; the thing doesn't open.'

'Unless,' said Ron, 'she's found a way of opening it and she's now possessed.'

'Wouldn't make any difference to her, she was so evil in the first place,' Harri shrugged.

Hermione was biting her lip, deep in thought.

'We know everything important,' Harri went on, addressing Hermione. 'We know they've stopped Apparition in and out of the Ministry. We know only the most senior Ministry members are allowed to connect their homes to the Floo Network now, because Ron heard those two Unspeakables complaining about it. And we know roughly where Umbridge's office is, because of what you heard that bearded bloke saying to his mate—'

'"I'll be up on level one, Dolores wants to see me,"' Hermione recited immediately.

'Exactly,' said Harri. 'And we know you get in using those funny coins, or tokens, or whatever they are because I saw that witch borrowing one from her friend—'

'But we haven't got any!'

'If the plan works, we will have,' Harri continued calmly.

'I don't know, Harri, I don't know...There are an awful lot of things that could go wrong; so much relies on chance...'

'That'll be true even if we spend another three months preparing,' said Harri. 'It's time to act.'

'All right,' said Ron slowly, 'let's say we go for it tomorrow...I think it should just be me and Harri.'

'Oh, don't start that again!' sighed Hermione. 'I thought we'd settled this.'

'It's one thing hanging around the entrances under the Cloak, but this is different, Hermione.' Ron jabbed a finger at a copy of the Daily Prophet dared ten days previously. 'You're on the list of Muggle-borns who didn't present themselves for interrogation!'

'And you're supposed to be dying of spattergroit at the Burrow! If anyone shouldn't go, it's Harri, she's got a ten-thousand-Galleon price on her head—'

'Fine, I'll stay here,' said Harri. 'Let me know if you ever defeat Voldemort, won't you?'

As Ron and Hermione laughed.

'Well, if all three of us go we'll have to Disapparate separately,' Ron was saying. 'We can't all fit under the Cloak anymore.'

'Sure thing, but we'll have to leave before anyone gets up, and...and I don't think we should come back once we get the Horcrux.' said Harri. 'Everyone's already suspicious, and they are bound to notice our absence.'

Hermione and Ron nodded their agreement.

The next morning, all three of them snuck out of the house and Apparated to a tiny alleyway where the first phase of their plan was scheduled to take place. It was deserted, except for a couple of large bins; the first ministry workers did not usually appear here until at least eight o'clock.

'Right then,' said Hermione, checking her watch two hours later. 'She ought to be here in about five minutes. When I've Stunned her—'

'Hermione, we know,' said Ron sternly. 'And I thought we were supposed to open the door before she got here?'

Hermione squealed.

'I nearly forgot! Stand back—'

She pointed her wand at the padlocked and heavily graffitied fire door beside them, which burst open with a crash. The dark corridor behind it led, as they knew from their careful scouting trips, into an empty theatre. Hermione pulled the door back toward her, to make it look as though it was still closed.

'And now,' she said, turning back to face the other two in the alley way, 'we put on the Cloak again -'

'—and we wait,' Ron finished, throwing it over Hermione's head like a blanket over a birdcage and rolling his eyes at Harri.

Little more than a minute later, there was a tiny pop and a little Ministry witch with flyaway gray hair Apparated feet from them, blinking a little in the sudden brightness: the sun had just come out from behind a cloud. She barely had time to enjoy the unexpected warmth, however, before Hermione's silent Stunning Spell hit her in the chest and she toppled over.

'Nicely done, Hermione,' said Ron, emerging from behind a bin beside the theatre door as Harri took off the Invisibility Cloak.

Together they carried the little witch into the dark passageway that led backstage. Hermione plucked a few hairs from the witch's head and added them to a flask of muddy Polyjuice Potion she had taken from the beaded bag. Ron was rummaging through the little witch's handbag.

'She's Mafalda Hopkirk,' he said, reading a small card that identified their victim as an assistant in the Improper Use of Magic Office. 'You'd better take this, Hermione, and here are the tokens,' He passed her several small golden coins, all embossed with the letters M.O.M., which he had taken from the witch's purse.

Hermione drank the Polyjuice Potion, which was now a pleasant heliotrope colour, and within seconds stood before them, the double of Mafalda Hopkirk. As she removed Mafalda's spectacles and put them on, Harri checked her watch.

'Were running late, Mr Magical Maintenance will be here any second.'

They hurried to close the door on the real Mafalda; Harri and Ron threw the Invisibility Cloak over themselves but Hermione remained in view, waiting. Seconds later there was another pop, and a small, ferrety-looking wizard appeared before them.

'Oh, hello, Mafalda.'

'Hello!' said Hermione in a quavery voice. 'How are you today?'

'Not so good, actually,' replied the little wizard, who looked thoroughly downcast.

As Hermione and the wizard headed for the main road, Harri and Ron crept along behind them.

'I'm sorry to hear you're under the heather,' said Hermione, talking firmly over the little wizard as he tried to expound upon his problems; it was essential to stop him from reaching the street.

'Here, have a sweet.'

'Eh? Oh, no thanks—'

'I insist!' said Hermione aggressively, shaking the bag of pastilles in his face. Looking rather alarmed, the little wizard took one.

The effect was instantaneous. The moment the pastille touched his tongue, the little wizard started vomiting so hard that he did not even notice as Hermione yanked a handful of hairs from the top of his head.

'Oh dear!' she said as he splattered the alley with sick. 'Perhaps you'd better take the day off!'

'No—no!' He choked and retched, trying to continue on his way despite being unable to walk straight. 'I must—today—must go—'

'But that's just silly!' said Hermione, alarmed. 'You can't go to work in this state—I think you ought to go to St. Mungo's and get them to sort you out!'

The wizard had collapsed, heaving, onto all fours, still trying to crawl toward the main street. Harri had to admire his persistence.

'You simply can't go to work like this!' cried Hermione.

At last he seemed to accept the truth of her words. Using a repulsed Hermione to claw his way back into a standing positions, he turned on the spot and vanished, leaving nothing behind but the bag Ron had snatched from his hand as he went and some flying chunks of vomit.

'Urgh,' said Hermione, holding up the skirts of her robe to avoid the puddles of sick. 'It would have made much less mess to Stun him too.'

'Yeah,' said Ron, emerging from under the cloak holding the wizard's bag, 'but I still think a whole pile of unconscious bodies would have drawn more attention. Keen on his job, though, isn't he? Chuck us the hair and the potion, then.'

Within two minutes, Ron stood before them, as small and ferrety as the sick wizard, and wearing the navy blue robes that had been folded in his bag.

'Weird he wasn't wearing them today, wasn't it, seeing how much he wanted to go? Anyway, I'm Reg Cattermole, according to the label in the back.'

'Now wait here,' Hermione told Harri, who was still under the Invisibility Cloak, 'and we'll be back with some hairs for you.'

She had to wait ten minutes skulking alone in the sick-splattered alleyway beside the door concealing the Stunned Mafalda. Finally Ron and Hermione reappeared.

'We don't know who she is,' Hermione said, passing Harri several curly black hairs, 'but she's gone home with a dreadful nosebleed!'

Harri excepted the potion of Hermione and drunk it, while trying not to vomit, and once the painful transformation was complete, she was able to take in her appearance. The woman she was impersonating was shorter than her by a few feet as the woman was roughly four foot three, with short curly black hair and brown eyes. Her body was quite toned, toner than Harri's.

'Take one of Mafalda's tokens,' Hermione told Harri, 'and let's go, it's nearly nine.'

They stepped out of the alleyway together. Fifty yards along the crowded pavement there were spiked black railings flanking two flights of steps, one labelled Gentlemen, the other Ladies.

'See you in a moment, then,' said Ron nervously, and he tottered off down the steps to gents. Harri and Hermione joined a number of oddly dressed women descending into what appeared to be an ordinary underground public toilet, tiled in grimy black and white.

'Morning, Mafalda!' called a witch in navy blue robes as she let herself into a cubicle by inserting her golden token into a slot in the door. 'A pain in the bum, this, isn't it? Forcing us all to get to work this way! Who are they expecting to turn up, Harrietta Dumbledore?'

The witch chuckled at her own wit. Hermione gave a forced chuckle.

'Yeah,' she said, 'stupid.'

Hermione and Harri let themselves into adjoining cubicles. To Harri's left and right came the sound of flushing. She crouched down and peered through the gap at the bottom of the cubicle, just in time to see a pair of booted feet climbing into the toilet next door. She looked left and saw Hermione looking at her. Both of them exchanged a look on how ridicules it was. Couldn't the Ministry of thought of something else? Sighing, both of them clambered into the toilet, and they knew at once that they had done the right thing; though they appeared to be standing in water, their shoes, feet, and robes remained quite dry. Harri reached up, pulled the chain, and next moment she had zoomed down a short chute, emerging out a fireplace into the Ministry of Magic. The great Atrium seemed darker than Harri remembered it. Previously a golden fountain had filled the centre of the hall, casting shimmering spots of light over the polished wooden floor and walls. Now a gigantic statue of black stone dominated the scene. It was rather frightening, this was sculpture of a witch and a wizard sitting on ornately carved thrones, looking down at the Ministry workers toppling out of fireplaces below them. Engraved in foot-high letters at the base of the statue were the words "Magic is Might".

Harri received a heavy blow on the back of the legs: Another wizard had just flown out of the fireplace behind her.

'Out of the way, can't y—oh, sorry, Fatima!'

Clearly frightened, the balding wizard hurried away. Apparently, the woman whom Harri was impersonating, Fatima, was intimidating, which was good. She knew how to act like an intimidating person, since she was herself, when you are on the wrong side of her.

'Psst!' said a voice, and she looked around to see a wispy little witch and the ferrety wizard from Magical Maintenance gesturing to her from over beside the statue. Harri hastened to join them.

'It's horrible, isn't it?' Hermione said to Harri, who was staring up at the statue. 'Have you seen what they're sitting on?'

Harri looked more closely and realized that what she had though were decoratively carved thrones were actually mounds of carved human: hundreds and hundreds of naked bodies, men, women, and children, all with rather stupid, ugly faces, twisted and pressed together to support the weight of the handsomely robed wizards.

'Muggles,' whispered Hermione. 'In their rightful place. Come on, let's get going.'

They joined the stream of witches and wizards moving toward the golden gates at the end of the hall looking around as surreptitiously as possible, but there was no sign of the distinctive figure of Dolores Umbridge. They passed through the gates and into a smaller hall, where queues were forming in front of twenty golden grilles housing as many lifts. They had barely joined the nearest one when a voice said, 'Cattermole!'

They looked around: Harri's stomach turned over. One of the Death Eaters who had witnessed Dumbledore's death was striding toward them. The Ministry workers beside them fell silent, their eyes downcast. Harri could feel fear rippling through them. The man's scowling, slightly brutish face was somehow at odds with his magnificent, sweeping robes, which were embroidered with much gold thread. Someone in the crowd around the lifts called sycophantically, 'Morning, Yaxley!'

Yaxley ignored them.

'I requested somebody from Magical Maintenance to sort out my office, Cattermole. It's still raining in there.'

Ron looked around as though hoping somebody else would intervene, but nobody spoke.

'Raining...in your office? That's—that's not good, is it?'

Ron gave a nervous laugh. Yaxley's eyes widened.

'You think it's funny, Cattermole, do you?'

A pair of witches broke away from the queue for the list and bustled off.

'No,' said Ron, 'no, of course—'

'You realize that I am on my way downstairs to interrogate your wife, Cattermole. In fact, I'm quite surprised you're not down there holding her hand while she waits. Already given her up as a bad job, have you? Probably wise. Be sure and marry a pureblood next time.'

Hermione had let out a little squeak of horror. Yaxley looked at her. She coughed feebly and turned away.

'I—I—' stammered Ron.

'But if my wife were accused of being a Mudblood,' said Yaxley, '—not that any woman I married would ever be mistaken for such filth—and the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement needed a job doing, I would make it my priority to do that job, Cattermole. Do you understand me?'

'Yes,' whispered Ron.

'Then attend to it, Cattermole, and if my office is not completely dry within an hour, you wife's Blood Status will be in even graver than it is now.'

The golden grille before them clattered open. With a nod an unpleasant smile to Harri, who was evidently expected to appreciate this treatment of Cattermole, Yaxley swept away toward another lift. Harri, Ron, and Hermione entered theirs, but nobody followed them: It was as if they were infectious. The grilles shut with a clang and the lift began to move upward.

'What am I going to do?' Ron asked the other two at once; he looked stricken. 'If I don't turn up, my wife...I mean, Cattermole's wife—'

'We'll come with you, we should stick together—' began Harri, but Ron shook his head feverishly.

'That's mental, we haven't got much time. You two find Umbridge, I'll go and sort out Yaxley's office—but how do I stop it raining?'

'Try Finite Incantatem,' said Hermione at once, 'that should stop the rain if it's a hex or curse; if it doesn't, something's gone wrong with an Atmospheric Charm, which will be more difficult to fix, so as an interim measure try Impervius to protect his belongings—'

'Say it again, slowly—' said Ron, searching his pockets desperately for a quill, but at that moment the lift juddered to a halt. A disembodied female voice said, 'Level four, Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, incorporating Beast, Being, and Spirit Divisions, Goblin Liason Office, and Pest Advisory Bureau,' and the grilles slid open again, admitting a couple of wizards and several pale violet paper airplanes that fluttered around the lamp in the ceiling of the lift.

'Morning, Laufeia,' said a bushily whiskered man, smiling at Harri. He glanced over at Ron and Hermione as the lift creaked upward once more: Hermione was now whispering frantic instructions to Ron. The wizard leaned toward Harri, leering, and muttered, 'Dirk Cresswell, eh? From Goblin Liaison? Nice one, Laufeia, I'm pretty confident I'll get his job now!'

He winked. Harri smiled back, hoping that this would be sufficient. She didn't have the slightest idea what he was talking about.

The lift stopped; the grilles opened once more.

'Level two, Department of Magical law enforcement, including the Improper Use of Magic Office, Auror Headquarters, and Wizengamot Administration Services,' said the disembodied witch's voice.

Harri saw Hermione give Ron a little push and he hurried out of the lift, followed by the other wizards, leaving Harri and Hermione alone. The moment the golden door had closed Hermione said, very fast, 'Actually, Harry, I think I'd better go after him, I don't think he knows what he's doing and if he gets caught the whole thing—'

'Level one, Minister of Magic and Support Staff.'

The golden grilles slid apart again and Hermione gasped. Four people stood before them, two of them in deep conversation: a long-haired wizard wearing magnificent robes of black and gold, and a squat, toad-like witch wearing a velvet bow in her short hair and clutching a clipboard to her chest.

'Ah, Mafalda!' said Umbridge, looking at Hermione. 'Travers sent you, did he?'

'Y—yes,' squeaked Hermione.

'Good, you'll do perfectly well.' Umbridge spoke to the wizard in black and gold. 'That's that problem solved, Minister, if Mafalda can be spared for record-keeping we shall be able to start straightaway.' She consulted her clipboard. 'Ten people today and one of them the wife of a Ministry employee! Tut, tut...even here, in the heart of the Ministry!' She stepped into the lift beside Hermione, as did the two wizards who had been listening to Umbridge's conversation with the Minister. 'We'll go straight down, Mafalda, and you'll find everything you need in the courtroom. Good morning, Laufeia, aren't you getting out?'

'Yes, of course,' said Harri in Fatima's cold voice.

Harri stepped out of the lift. The golden grilles clanged shut behind her. Glancing over her shoulder, Harri saw Hermione's anxious face sinking back out of sight, a tall wizard on either side of her, Umbridge's velvet hair-bow level with her shoulder.

'What brings you up here, Fatima?' asked the new Minister of Magic. His long black hair and beard were streaked with silver, and a great overhanging forehead shadowed his glinting eyes, putting Harri in mind of a crab looking out from beneath a rock.

'Needed a quick word with,' Harri hesitated for a fraction of a second, 'Arthur Weasley. Someone said he was up on level one.'

'Ah,' said Pius Thickness. 'Has he been caught having contact with an Undesirable?'

'No, nothing like that.'

'Ah, well. It is only a matter of time. If you ask me, the blood traitors are as bad as the Mudbloods. Good day, Fatima.'

'Good day, Minister.'

Harri watched Thicknesse march away along the thickly carpeted corridor. The moment the Minister had passed out of sight, Harri took out her Invisibility Cloak, threw it over herself, and set off along the corridor in the opposite direction, down a corridor to search Umbridge's office encase the locket was somewhere in there.

Halfway along the corridor she emerged into a wide-open space where a dozen witches and wizards sat in rows at small desks not unlike school desks, though much more highly polished and free from graffiti. They were all facing a mahogany door with a golden sign underneath reading:

_Dolores Umbridge_

_Senior Undersecretary to the Minister_

_Below that, a slightly shinier new plaque read:_

_Head of the Muggle-born_

_Registration Commission_

Harri looked back at the dozen pamphlet-makers: Though they were intent upon their work, she could hardly suppose that they would not notice if the door of an empty office opened in front of them. He therefore withdrew from an inner pocket an odd object with little waving legs and a rubber-bulbed horn for a body. Crouching down beneath the cloak, he placed the Decoy Detonator on the ground. It scuttled away at once through the legs of the witches and wizards in front of him. A few moments later, during which Harri waited with his hand upon the doorknob, there came a long bang and a great deal of acrid black smoke billowed from a corner. The young witch in the front row shrieked: Pink pages flew everywhere as she and her fellows jumped up, looking around for the source of the commotion.

Harri turned the doorknob, stepped into Umbridge's office, and closed the door behind her. She felt as though she had stepped back in time. The room was exactly like Umbridge's office at Hogwarts: Lace draperies, doilies, and dried flowers covered every available surface. The walls bore the same ornamental plates, each featuring a highly coloured, beribboned kitten, gambolling and frisking with a sickening cuteness. The desk was covered with a flouncy, flowered cloth.

Fighting the urge to vomit, Harri raised her wand, and murmured, 'Accio Locket.'

Nothing happened, but she had not expected it to; no doubt Umbridge knew all about protective charms and spells. She therefore hurried behind her desk and began pulling open drawers. She saw quills and notebooks and Spellotape; enchanted paper clips that coiled snakelike from their drawer and had to be beaten back; a sloppy little lace box full of spare hair bows and clips; but no sign of a locket. There was a filing cabinet behind the desk: Harri set to searching it. Like Filch's filing cabinets at Hogwarts, it was full of folders, each labelled with a name. It was not until Harri reached the bottommost drawer that she saw something to distract her from her search: Mr Weasley's file.

She pulled it out and opened it.

_Arthur Weasley_

_Blood Status Pureblood, but with unacceptable pro-Muggle leanings. Known member of the Order of the Phoenix_

_Family: Wife (pureblood), seven children, two youngest at Hogwarts. NB: Youngest son currently at home, seriously ill, Ministry inspectors have confirmed._

_Security Status: TRACKED. All movements are being monitored. Strong likelihood Undesirable_

_No. 1 will contact (has stayed with Weasley family previously)_

'Undesirable Number One,' Harri muttered under her breath as she replaced Mr Weasley's folder and shut the drawer. She had an idea she knew who that was, and sure enough, as she straightened up and glanced around the office for fresh hiding places, she saw a poster of herself on the wall, with the words Undesirable No. 1 emblazoned across her chest. A little pink note was stuck to it with a picture of a kitten in the corner. Harri moved across to read it and saw that Umbridge had written, "Is not to be harmed".

More confused than ever - why did Voldemort want her captured unharmed? - she proceeded to grope in the bottoms of the vases and baskets of dried flowers, but was not at all surprised that the locket was not there. She gave the office one last sweeping look, before putting on her Invisibility Cloak and sneaking out of the room. Nobody noticed a thing. She then hurried along the corridor, back towards the lifts to rescue Hermione.

The lift was empty when it arrived. Harri jumped in and pulled off the Invisibility Cloak as it started its descent. To her enormous relief, when it rattle to a halt at level two, a soaking-wet and wide-eyed Ron got in.

'M-morning,' he stammered to Harri as the lift set off again.

'Ron, it's me, Harri!'

'Harri! Blimey, I forgot what you looked like—why isn't Hermione with you?'

'She had to go down to the courtrooms with Umbridge, she couldn't refuse, and—'

But before Harri could finish the lift had stopped again. The doors opened and Mr Weasley walked inside, talking to an elderly witch whose blonde hair was teased so high that it resembled an anthill.

'...I quite understand what you're saying, Wakanda, but I'm afraid I cannot be part to—'

Mr Weasley broke off; he had noticed Harri. It was very strange to have Mr Weasley glare at her with that much dislike.

The lift doors closed and the four of them trundled downward once more.

'Oh, hello, Reg,' said Mr Weasley, looking around at the sound of steady dripping from Ron's robes. 'Isn't your wife in for questioning today? Er—what's happened to you? Why are you so wet?'

'Yaxley's office is raining,' said Ron. He addressed Mr Weasley's shoulder, and Harri felt sure he was scared that his father might recognize him if they looked directly into each other's eyes. 'I couldn't stop it, so they've sent me to get Bernie Pillsworth, I think they said—'

'Yes, a lot of offices have been raining lately,' said Mr Weasley. 'Did you try Meterolojinx Recanto? It worked for Bletchley.'

'Meterolojinx Recanto?' whispered Ron. 'No, I didn't. Thanks, D—I mean, thanks, Arthur.'

The lift doors opened; the old witch with the anthill hair left, and Ron darted past her out of sight. Harri made to follow him, but found her path blocked as Percy Weasley strode into the lift, his nose buried in some papers he was reading. Not until the doors had clanged shut again did Percy realise he was in a lift with his father. He glanced up, saw Mr Weasley, turned radish red, and left the lift the moment the doors opened again. For the second time, Harri tried to get out, but this time found her way blocked by Mr Weasley's arm.

'One moment, Fatima.'

The lift doors closed and as they clanked down another floor, Mr Weasley said, 'I hear you laid information about Dirk Cresswell.'

Harri had the impression that Mr Weasley's anger was no less because of the brush with Percy. She decided his best chance was to act stupid, not that it was acting. She really had no idea what he was on about.

'Sorry?' she said.

'Don't pretend, Fitima,' said Mr Weasley fiercely. 'You down the wizard who faked his family tree, didn't you?'

'I—so what if I did?' said Harri.

'So Dirk Cresswell is ten times the wizard you are,' said Mr Weasley quietly, as the lift sank ever lower. 'And if he survives Azkaban, you'll have to answer to him, not to mention his wife, his sons, and his friends—'

'Arthur,' Harri interrupted, 'you know you're being tracked, don't you?'

'Is that a threat, Fatima?' said Mr Weasley loudly.

'No,' Harri said calmly, 'it's a fact! They're watching your every move—'

The lift doors opened. They had reached the Atrium. Mr Weasley gave Harri a scathing look and swept from the lift. Harri stood there, shaken. She wished she was impersonating somebody other than Laufeia Fatima...the lift doors clanged shut.

Harri pulled out the Invisibility Cloak and put it back on. She would try to extricate Hermione on her own while Ron was dealing with the raining office. When the doors opened, she stepped out into a torch-lit stone passageway quite different from the wood panelled and carpeted corridors above. As the lift rattled away again, Harri shivered slightly, looking toward the distant black door that marked the entrance to the Department of Mysteries.

She set off, her destination not the black door, but the doorway she remembered on the left-hand side, which opened onto the flight of stairs down to the court chambers. Her mind grappled with possibilities as she crept down them: She still had a couple of Decoy Detonators, but perhaps it would be better to simply knock on the courtroom door, enter as Fatima, and ask for a quick word with Mafalda? Of course, she did not know whether Fatima was sufficiently important to get away with this, and even if she managed it, Hermione's non-reappearance might trigger a search before they were clear of the Ministry...

Lost in thought, she did not immediately register the unnatural chill that was creeping over her, as if she were descending into fog. It was becoming colder and colder with every step she took: a cold that reached right down into her throat and tore at her lungs. And then she felt that stealing sense of despair, of hopelessness, filling her, expanding inside her...

Dementors, she thought immediately and her suspicions were soon confirm when she reached the foot of the stairs and turned right. The dark passage outside the courtrooms was packed with tall, black-hooded figures, their faces completely hidden, their ragged breathing the only sound in the place. The petrified Muggle-borns brought in for questioning sat huddled and shivering on hard wooden benches. Most of them were hiding their faces in their hands, perhaps in an instinctive attempt to shield themselves from the dementors' greedy mouths. Some were accompanied by families, others sat alone. The dementors were gliding up and down in front of them, and the cold, and the hopelessness, and the despair of the place laid themselves upon Harri like a curse...

Fight it, she told herself, but she knew that she could not conjure a Patronus here without revealing herself instantly. So she moved forward as silently as she could, and with every step she took numbness seemed to steal over her brain, but she forced herself to think of Hermione and of Ron, who needed her. Moving through the towering black figures was terrifying: The eyeless faces hidden beneath their hoods turned as she passed, and she felt sure that they sense her, sensed, perhaps, a human presence that still had some hope, some resilience... And then, abruptly and shockingly amid the frozen silence, one of the dungeon doors on the left of the corridor was flung open and screams echoed out of it.

'No, no, I'm a half-blood, I'm a half-blood, I tell you! My father was a wizard, he was, look him up, Arkie Alderton, he's a well-known broomstick designer, look him up, I tell you—get your hands off me, get your hands off—'

'This is your final warning,' said Umbridge's soft voice, magically magnified so that it sounded clearly over the man's desperate screams. 'If you struggle, you will be subjected to the Dementor's Kiss.'

The man's screams subsided, but dry sobs echoed through the corridor.

'Take him away,' said Umbridge.

Two dementors appeared in the doorway of the courtroom, their rotting, scabbed hands clutching the upper arms of a wizard who appeared to be fainting. They glided away down the corridor with him, and the darkness they trailed behind them swallowed him from sight.

'Next—Mary Cattermole,' called Umbridge.

A small woman stood up; she was trembling from head to foot. Her dark hair was smoothed back into a bun and she wore long, plain robes. Her face was completely bloodless. As she passed the dementors, Harri saw her shudder. She did it instinctively, without any sort of plan, because she hated the sight of her walking alone into the dungeon: As the door began to swing closed, she slipped into the courtroom behind her.

It was not the same room in which she had once been interrogated for improper use of magic. This one was much smaller, though the ceiling was quite as high; it gave the claustrophobic sense of being stuck at the bottom of a deep well. There were more dementors in here, casting their freezing aura over the place; they stood like faceless sentinels in the corners farthest from the high raised platform. Here, behind a balustrade, sat Umbridge, with Yaxley on one side of her, and Hermione, quite as white-faced as Mrs. Cattermole, on the other. At the foot of the platform, a bright-silver, long-haired cat prowled up and down, up and down, up and down, and Harri realized that it was there to protect the prosecutors from the despair that emanated from the dementors: That was for the accused to feel, not the accusers.

'Sit down,' said Umbridge in her soft, silky voice.

Mrs. Cattermole stumbled to the single seat in the middle of the floor beneath the raised platform. The moment she had sat down, chains clinked out of the arms of the chair and bound her there.

'You are Mary Elizabeth Cattermole?' asked Umbridge.

Mrs. Cattermole gave a single, shaky nod.

'Married to Reginald Cattermole of the Magical Maintenance Department?'

Mrs. Cattermole burst into tears.

'I don't know where he is, he was supposed to meet me here!'

Umbridge ignored her.

'Mother to Maisie, Ellie, and Alfred Cattermole?'

Mrs. Cattermole sobbed harder than ever. Harri couldn't help but sympathise for her.

'They're frightened, they think I might not come home—'

'Spare us,' spat Yaxley. 'The brats of Mudbloods do not stir our sympathies.'

Mrs. Cattermole's sobs masked Harri's footsteps as she made her way carefully toward the steps that led up to the raised platform. The moment she had passed the place where the Patronus cat patrolled, she felt the change in temperature: It was warm and comfortable here. The Patronus, she was sure, was Umbridge's - who else in the room would have a cat Patronus? -, and it glowed rightly because she was so happy here, in her element, upholding the twisted laws she had helped to write. Slowly, and very carefully, Harri edged her way along the platform behind Umbridge, Yaxley, and Hermione, taking a seat behind the latter. She was worried about making Hermione jump. She thought of casting the Muffliato charm upon Umbridge and Yaxley, but even murmuring the word might cause Hermione alarm. Then Umbridge raised her voice to address Mrs. Cattermole, and Harri seized her chance.

'I'm behind you,' she whispered into Hermione's ear.

As she had expected, Hermione jumped so violently she nearly overturned the bottle of ink with which she was supposed to be recording the interview. Fortunately, both Umbridge and Yaxley were concentrating upon Mrs. Cattermole, and this went unnoticed.

'A wand was taken from you upon your arrival at the Ministry today, Mrs. Cattermole,' Umbridge was saying, 'Eight-and-three-quarter inches, cherry, unicorn-hair core. Do you recognize that description?'

Mrs. Cattermole nodded, mopping her eyes on her sleeve.

'Could you please tell us from which witch or wizard you took that wand?'

'T—took?' sobbed Mrs. Cattermole. 'I didn't t-take it from anybody. I b-bought it when I was eleven years old. It—it—it—chose me.'

She cried harder than ever.

Umbridge laughed a soft girlish laugh that made Harri want to attack her. Sometimes she hated her Valkyrie instincts. Umbridge leant forward over the barrier, the better to observe her victim, and something gold swung forward too, and dangled over the void: the locket.

Hermione had seen it; she let out a little squeak, but Umbridge and Yaxley, still intent upon their prey, were deaf to everything else.

'No,' said Umbridge, 'no, I don't think so, Mrs. Cattermole. Wands only choose witches or wizards. You are not a witch. I have your responses to the questionnaire that was sent to you here— Mafalda, pass them to me.'

Umbridge held out a small hand: She looked so toadlike at that moment that Harri was quite surprised not to see webs between the stubby fingers. Hermione's hands were shaking with shock. She fumbled in a pile of documents balanced on the chair beside her, finally withdrawing a sheaf of parchment with Mrs. Cattermole's name on it.

'That's—that's pretty, Dolores,' she said, pointing at the pendant gleaming in the ruffled folds of Umbridge's blouse.

'What?' snapped Umbridge, glancing down. 'Oh yes—an old family heirloom,' she said, patting the locket lying on her large bosom. 'The S stands for Selwyn... I am related to the Selwyns...Indeed, there are few pure blood families to whom I am not related...A pity,' she continued in a louder voice, flicking through Mrs. Cattermole's questionnaire, 'that the same cannot be said for you. "Parents professions: greengrocers".'

Yaxley laughed jeeringly. Below, the fluffy silver cat patrolled up and down, and the dementors stood waiting in the corners. It was Umbridge's lie that brought the blood surging into Harri's brain and obliterated her sense of caution—that the locket she had taken as a bribe from a petty criminal was being used to holster her own pure-blood credentials, when in fact it represented Harri's own heritage. She raised her wand, not even troubling to keep it concealed beneath the Invisibility Cloak, and said, 'Stupefy!'

There was a flash of red light; Umbridge crumpled and her forehead hit the edge of the balustrade: Mrs. Cattermole's papers slid off her lap onto the floor and, down below, the prowling silver cat vanished. Ice-cold air hit them like an oncoming wind: Yaxley, confused, looked around for the source of the trouble and saw

Harri's disembodied hand and wand pointing at him. He tried to draw his own wand, but too late: 'Stupefy!'

Yaxley slid to the ground to lie curled on the flood.

'Harri!'

'Hermione, if you think I was going to sit here and let her pretend—'

'Harry, Mrs Cattermole!'

Harri whirled around, throwing off the Invisibility Cloak: down below, the dementors had moved out of their corners: they were gliding toward the woman chained to the chair: Whether because the Patronus had vanished or because they sensed that their masters were no longer in control, they seemed to have abandoned restraint. Mrs. Cattermole let out a terrible scream of fear as a slimy, scabbed hand grasped her chin and forced her face back.

'EXPECTO PATRONUM!'

The silver stag soared from the tip of Harri's wand and leaped toward the dementors, which fell back and melted into the dark shadows again. The stag's light, more powerful and more warming than the cat's protection, filed the whole dungeon as it cantered around and around the room.

'Get the Horcrux,' Harri told Hermione.

She ran back down the steps, stuffing the Invisibility Cloak back into her bag, and approached Mrs Cattermole.

'You?' she whispered, gazing into her face. 'But—but Reg said you were the one who submitted my name for questioning!'

'Did I?' muttered Harry, tugging at the chains binding her arms. 'Well, I've had a change of heart. Diffindo!' Nothing happened. 'Relashio!' The chains clinked and withdrew into the arms of the chair.

Mrs. Cattermole looked just as frightened as before.

'I don't understand,' she whispered.

'You're going to leave here with us,' said Harri, pulling her to her feet. 'Go home, grab your children, and get out, get out of the country if you've got to. Disguise yourselves and run. You've seen how it is, you won't get anything like a fair hearing here.'

'Harri,' said Hermione, 'how are we going to get out of here with all those dementors outside the door?'

'Patronuses,' said Harri, pointing her wand at her own: The stag slowed and walked, still gleaming brightly, toward the door. 'As many as we can muster; do yours, Hermione.'

'Expec—Expecto patronum,' said Hermione. Nothing happened.

'It's the only spell she has trouble with,' Harri told a completely bemused Mrs. Cattermole. 'Bit unfortunate, really...Come on, Hermione...'

'Expecto patronum!'

A silver otter burst from the end of Hermione's wand and swam gracefully through the air to join the stag.

'C'mon,' said Harri, and he led Hermione and Mrs. Cattermole to the door.

When the Patronuses glided out of the dungeon there were cries of shock from the people waiting outside. Harri looked around: the dementors were falling back on both sides of them, melding into the darkness, scattering before the silver creatures.

'It's been decided that you should all go home and go into hiding with your families.' Harri told the waiting Muggle-borns, who were dazzled by the light of the Patronuses and still cowering slightly. 'Go abroad if you can. Just get well away from the Ministry. That's the new official position, from a member of the royal family. Now, if you'll just follow the Patronuses, you'll be able to leave from the Atrium.'

They managed to get up the stone steps without being intercepted, but as they approached the lifts Harri started to have misgivings. If they emerged into the Atrium with a silver stag, an otter soaring alongside it, and twenty or so people, half of them accused Muggleborns, she could not help feeling that they would attract unwanted attention. She had just reached this unwelcome conclusion when the lift clanged to a halt in front of them.

'Reg!' screamed Mrs. Cattermole, and she threw herself into a startled Ron's arms. 'Fatima let me out, she attacked Umbridge and Yaxley, and he's told all of us to leave the country, I think we'd better do it, Reg, I really do, let's hurry home and fetch the children and—why are you so wet?'

'Water,' muttered Ron, stating the obvious and disengaging himself. 'Harri, they know there are intruders inside the Ministry, due to the real Fatima turning up. I reckon we've got five minutes if that—'

Hermione's Patronus vanished with a pop as she turned a horror struck face to Harri.

'Harri, if we're trapped here—!'

'We won't be if we move fast,' said Harri. She addressed the silent group behind them, who were all gawping at her.

'Who's got wands?'

About half of them raised their hands.

'Okay, all of you who haven't got wands need to attach yourself to someone who has. We'll need to be fast before they stop us. Come on.'

They managed to cram themselves into two lifts. Harri's Patronus stood sentinel before the golden grilles as they shut and the lifts began to rise.

'Level eight,' said the cool witch's voice, 'Atrium.'

Harri knew at once that they were in trouble. The Atrium was full of people moving from fireplace to fireplace, sealing them off.

'Harri!' squeaked Hermione. 'What are we going to—?'

'STOP!' Harri thundered, voice echoing through the Atrium: The wizards sealing the fireplaces froze. 'Follow me,' she whispered to the group of terrified Muggleborns, who moved forward in a huddle, shepherded by Ron and Hermione.

'What's up, Laufeia?" said the same balding wizard who had followed Harri out of the fireplace earlier. He looked nervous.

'This lot need to leave before you seal the exits,' said Harri with all the authority she could muster.

The group of wizards in front of her looked at one another.

'We've been told to seal all exits and not let anyone—'

'Are you contradicting me?' Harri blustered. 'Would you like me to have you family tree examined, like I had Dirk Cresswell's?'

'Sorry!' gasped the balding wizard, backing away. 'I didn't mean anything, Laufeia, but I thought...I thought they were in for questioning and...'

'Their blood is pure,' said Harri. 'Purer than many of yours, I daresay. Off you go,' she boomed to the Muggle-borns, who scurried forward into the fireplaces and began to vanish in pairs. The Ministry wizards hung back, some looking confused, others scared and resentful. Then, just as Harri was letting out a relieved sigh:

'Mary!'

Mrs. Cattermole looked over her shoulder. The real Reg Cattermole, no longer vomiting but pale and wan, and just come running out of a lift.

'R–Reg?'

She looked from her husband to Ron, who swore loudly.

The balding wizard gaped, his head turning ludicrously from one Reg Cattermole to the other.

'Hey—what's going on? What is this?'

'Seal the exit! SEAL IT!'

Yaxley had burst out of another lift and was running toward the group beside the fireplaces into which all of the Muggle-borns but Mrs. Cattermole had now vanished. As the balding wizard lifted his wand, Harri raised an fist and punched him - who needed magic when you are a Valkyrie? -, sending him flying through the air and hurting her knuckles. Fatima did not have Harri's strength.

'He's been helping Muggle-borns escape, Yaxley!' Harri shouted.

The balding wizard's colleagues set up an uproar, under cover of which Ron grabbed Mrs. Cattermole, pulled her into the still-open fireplace, and disappeared. Confused, Yaxley looked from Harri to the punched wizard, while the real Reg Cattermole screamed,

'My Wife! Who was that with my wife? What's going on?'

Harri saw Yaxley's head turn, saw an inkling of truth dawn in that brutish face.

'Come on!' Harri shouted at Hermione; she seized her hand and they jumped into the fireplace together as Yaxley's curse sailed over Harri's head. They spun for a few seconds before shooting up out of a toilet into a cubicle. Harri flung open the door: Ron was standing there beside the sinks, still wrestling with Mrs. Cattermole.

'Reg, I don't understand—'

'Let go, I'm not your husband, you've got to go home!'

There was a noise in the cubicle behind them; Harry looked around: Yaxley had just appeared.

'LET'S GO!' Harri yelled. She seized Hermione by the hand and Ron by the arm and turned on the spot, after throwing a curse at Yaxley.

* * *

><p><strong>Facebook link:<strong> On profile  
><strong>Written:<strong> 24 November 2011


	3. Deathly Hallows

**CHAPTER THREE: DEATHLY HALLOWS**

'Where are we?' asked Ron, getting to his feet and looking around. They were in some sort of beautiful rainforest. Everything was a lush green with golden sun light making its way through the canopy above.

'A forest not too far away from my home.' answered Harri, brushing some leaves off her robes. 'Uncle Severus use to take me here for picnics along with my grandparents. There is a small clearing up ahead near a river where my dad proposed to my mum.'

'Right...what are you doing, Hermione?' asked Ron, and Harri looked behind her to see Hermione standing a short distance away with her wand raise as well as one hand.

'Salvio Heria... I'm putting up some protective enchantments.' answered Hermione. 'Protego Totalum...I think it's best that we stay here until we figure out what we are going to do next...Repello Muggle-turn...Muffiato...how about you and Harri get started in putting up the tent.' She added, chucking her small beaded bag at them, which unfortunately hit Ron in the face.

'I think she's got more than a tent in there. More like a bloody house.' Ron grumbled to Harri, rubbing his nose. Harri tried to look sympathetic while she was actually trying to hold in her laughter as she pulled out the tent and got started on it.

Fifteen minutes later, the three of them were sitting inside the tent, around the dining table, examining the Horcrux.

'There isn't any chance someone's destroyed it since Kreacher had it, is there?' asked a semi-hopeful Ron. 'I mean, we are sure it's still a Horcrux?'

'I think it is.' answered Hermione, who was currently examining it. 'If it wasn't, don't you think that there would be some sort of damage done to it? No, I think Kreacher is right. First we figure out how to open the locket before we figure out how to destroy it.'

'That's the easy part. One only needs to speak Parseltongue.' said Harri.

'How do you know that?' asked Hermione.

'Hermione, it belonged to Slytherin. How else do you think it could be opened? My family is the only known Parselmouths to exist. So having it locked so only a Parseltongue can open was the safest bet.'

'Okay, then that solves one problem...how do we deal with the second one? How do we destroy it?' asked Ron.

'The only thing that I know that would be able to destroy it is a basilisk fang. I don't know about you guys, but I'm sadly out of those.' answered Harri.

For an hour they sat there silently thinking of ways that they could destroy it and in the end they were starting to give up when Harri exclaimed, 'The Sword of Gryffindor!'

'What about it?' asked Ron.

'Well, it's Goblin-made, isn't it?' said Harri as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.

'So?'

'So...it only imbibes which strengthens it.'

'Good to know, but what has that got to do with anything?'

'We already know that a Horcrux can be destroyed using basilisk venom, right?'

'Right,' Hermione and Ron said in unison, though Hermione was beginning to understand where Harri was going.

'And I killed the basilisk with the Sword of Gryffindor...'

'...which means we'll be able to destroy the Horcrux with the sword since it would have imbibed the venom making it stronger!' exclaimed Hermione. 'But we don't know where it is.' she then said glumly.

'Last time I saw it, it was in Grandfather's office.' Harri told them sadly.

'So the chances of getting it are...impossible.' said Ron.

'People said that about a twelve year old slaying a basilisk, remember?' said Harri.

'So...you want to break into Hogwarts and steal the sword?' asked Ron, looking horrified at the very thought.

'Of course she wasn't. Vol -'

'Don't say his name!' snapped Ron.

' - You-Know-Who would have had Death Eaters stationed around Hogwarts for it is one of the most likely places for Harri to go.' said Hermione. 'Right Harri?'

'Yeah, right.' said a thoughtful Harri. 'For the time being, I suggest we look for the rest of the Horcruxes.' she added, putting the locket round her neck.

'What are you doing?' exclaimed a shocked Hermione.

'We need to keep it safe, and this way, I will always know where it is.' answered a calm Harri.

'In that case, I suggest that we take turns wearing it. Who knows what will happen if we wear it too long.' Hermione said reasonably.

Harri only nodded and got up to make them some food.

**6**

Three days later - during which time the trio spent trying to figure out where the other Horcruxes were - found Harri as the Guardian of the Locket once more and once more, she was outside the tent, on sentry duty. However, it wasn't Harri who insisted on taking turns on guard duty. No, it was Hermione's. Regardless of Harri pointedly telling her that the protective charms and her sneakoscope would alert them of anything amiss, plus the fact that nobody came out here, Hermione had remained stubborn and had insisted. Harri and Ron just did as she asked. Sometimes, when it came to Hermione, doing what she said was the best remedy.

Anyway, it was one this particular nighttime guard duty that the unexpected happened. It start out like any other guard period where Harri would sit patiently, listening to everything around her - except Hermione and Ron's bickering - and see would think about how pointless this exercise was. Though she was soon proven wrong...about the exercise being pointless, that is. As she sat there, she became aware of a bright silver light, which had appeared a short distance in front of her, just outside the protective barriers.

Harri jumped to her feet and raised her wand. Just as she was about to yell out to her friends, she saw what the unusual bright light was and her yell disappear in her throat. It was an owl. It was a silver-white, Patronus owl. Harry recognised at once who's Patronus it was. She had seen it numerous times before for it was used to send messages to her sometimes. After all, how could she forget her Uncle Severus' Patronus, seeing as it was Aurora's Animagus form. Did this mean that he still loved Aurora?

Harri watched the owl, and the owl seemed to be watching her from where it sat on a low branch. Was Severus trying to contact her or was this some sort of trap? Harri did not know, but her instincts were telling her to go to the owl and, as always, she listened to her instincts. Taking a deep breath, Harri stepped outside the protective barrier and walked over to the owl, which took flight. Harri followed it through the forest and eventually came to the clearing, by the river, where her father proposed to her mother. The owl was circling above a certain spot in the river.

Frowning, Harri climbed a nearby tree and looked down into the water to see what it was circling. Harri gasped. The owl was circling none other than the Sword of Gryffindor. Harri quickly looked at the owl and then looked around for Severus, trying to see him, but see couldn't. She turned her attention back to the owl, only to find that it had disappeared. She had wondered why it had become darker.

Shrugging, Harri climbed back down before taking off her clothes - leaving her bikini on - and jumping into the running river towards the sword. She couldn't believe that the sword was there, right in front of her, and what more, she could not believe it that Severus was the one that led her to it. The only question was, why did he do it. He had already shown them that he was loyal to his brother or was that just an act. So many questions buzzed around Harri's mind but she forgot about all of them as she stretched out her hand to grab the sword and the locket, which was still around her neck, began to tighten and drag her away from the sword. Harri panicked. She struggled against the pulling force and probably would have strangled herself had it not been for Ron jumping in and saving her.

'Are you bloody insane?' demanded Ron. 'What were you thinking jumping in with that Horcrux still around your neck? You could have killed yourself!'

'I forgot that I was still wearing it.' admitted Harri, trying herself with her wand before getting dressed. 'What are you doing here anyway?'

'I came out to see if you wanted any company and saw you walking off following a Patronus owl.' answered Ron. 'Here's the sword. I'm guessing that's what you jumped in for.'

'Yeah, it was. The owl led me straight to it.'

'Odd. Do you know whose Patronus it was?'

'Uncle Severus'.'

'What? Why would Severus sent you to find the sword?' asked a bewildered Ron.

'No idea.' said an equally perplexed Harri. 'But that doesn't matter now. All that matters is that we've now got the sword and we can now destroy the locket.' she said, handing Ron the sword and taking the Horcrux off him. 'Are you ready?'

'Ready? Ready for what? Why do you want me to do it?'

'You got the sword out of the river and saved me.' shrugged Harri. 'I'm going to open it,' continued Harri, 'and you stab it. Straightaway, okay? Because whatever's in there will put up a fight. The bit of my uncle in the diary tried to kill me.'

'Tell me when.' said a nervous Ron, raising the sword.

'All right, on three.' said Harri as she placed the locket on a nearby log. 'One...two...three..._open_!'

The moment Harri hissed, the locket swung open and the sword plunged into the locket, without giving it any time to retaliate.

'That was surprisingly easy,' commented a surprised Harri as she picked up the remains.

'We should get back to Hermione. She'll probably be wondering where we are.' said Ron.

'Good point,' replied Harri, leading the way back to the tent.

However, when they arrived back, they found out that Hermione hadn't even noticed their disappearance for she was currently fast asleep on the couch with a the _Tale's of Beadle the Bard_ open on her chest. Harri and Ron looked at each other and silently agreed to let Hermione sleep, and tell her about the owl and the sword in the morning.

**6**

The next morning, Harri and Ron filled Hermione in on last night's events. At first Hermione was horrified to learn that Harri recklessly went and followed Severus' Patronus, but then she was happy to learn that they were one Horcrux down.

'Now we just have to find the others.' Hermione said cheerfully, before coming serious. 'I think that we should leave this forest, just to be safe. I also want to go and see Xenophilius Lovegood.'

'Luna's father? Why?' asked Ron.

'Remember how I found that mark that Xenophilius was wearing at the wedding in my copy of Beedle the Bard?'

'Yes.'

'Well, I found it again in my copy of _The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore_. See?' she said, handing Harri the book open to the page of a letter Albus wrote to Grindelwald. 'Look at the signature.'

Harri obeyed and saw that her grandfather had replaced the A of Albus with a tiny version of the same triangular mark inscribed upon the _Tales of Beedle the Bard_.

'What's your point, Hermione?' asked Harri.

'I now know why Albus left me the book. The Ministry would not have noticed the symbol amongst all the other ruins. He was sending us a message. So we should go and see Mr Lovegood and see what he thinks the symbol means.'

'All right then.' said Harri. 'But once we've seen Lovegood, let's get back to finding the Horcruxes. Where does he live, anyway?'

'Not too far away from the Burrow.' answered Ron. 'I dunno exactly where, but Mum and Dad always point towards the hills whenever they mention them. Shouldn't be too hard to find.'

'Have to be easier to find than the Horcruxes.' agreed Harri.

The next morning, they Disapparated and arrived a short distance away from the Burrow.

'It's weird, being thins near, but not going to visit.' said Ron sadly.

'I know what you mean.' sighed Harri, before turning and walking towards the Lovegoods' place.

Their visit to see Xenophilius Lovegood was highly educational. He welcomed them with open arms and told Harri how he would continue to publish the truth. Whist there, Lovegood told them about the Deathly Hallows which are three highly powerful magical objects supposedly created by Death and given to each of three brothers in the Peverell family. They consisted of the Elder Wand, an immensely powerful wand that was considered undefeatable; the Resurrection Stone, a stone which could summon the spirits of the dead, and the Cloak of Invisibility, which, as its name suggests, renders the user completely invisible. According to legend, he who possesses these three artefacts would become the Master of Death.

With this knowledge, the three of them Apparated away to the Forest of Dean where Hermione use to go with her parents. Harri was beginning to notice that they were spending a lot of time in forests.

Once the three of them had put up the tent and protective charms, they began to discuss what they had just learnt and agreed about whether or not Voldemort was after the elder wand. Harri was positive that he was, while Hermione disagreed saying that Harri was trying to make information fit into the story, and Ron just stayed out of it for he wanted neither girl mad at him.

As the weeks crept on, all the trio could do was think of where the other three Horcruxes were. Of course they knew that the snake would be that hardest to deal with, so they focused on the other two, gathering that one of them was Hufflepuff's cup while the other was something of Ravenclaws. During which time, Harri continuously went over the different places that might have meant something to Voldemort in her mind, but it never helped. So far, each place they had thought of turned out to be negative.

In the meantime, they tuned in to a radio station, which they stumbled across by accident, called Dumbldorewatch.

'...apologize for our temporary absence from the airwaves, which was due to a number of house calls in our area by those charming Death Eaters.' Said Lee Jordon as they sat around the radio listening one night. 'We have now found ourselves another secure location, and I'm pleased to tell you that two of our regular contributors have joined me here this evening. Evening, boys!'

'Hi.'

'Evening, River.'

River was the code name Lee used.

'But before we hear from Royal and Romulus,' Lee went on, 'let's take a moment to report those deaths that the Wizarding Wireless Network News and Daily Prophet don't think important enough to mention. It is with great regret that we inform our listeners of the murders of Ted Tonks and Dirk Cresswell.'

Harri gasped. Ted Tonks was Tonks' father. She, Ron, and Hermione gazed at one another in horror.

'A goblin by the name of Gornuk was also killed. It is believed that Muggle-born Dean Thomas and a second goblin, both believed to have been travelling with Tonks, Cresswell, and Gornuk, may have escaped. If Dean is listening, or if anyone has any knowledge of his whereabouts, his parents and sisters are desperate for news. Meanwhile, in Gaddley, a Muggle family of five has been found dead in their home. Muggle authorities are attributing their deaths to a gas leak, but members of the Order of the Phoenix inform me that it was the Killing Curse—more evidence, as if it were needed, of the fact that Muggle slaughter is becoming little more than a recreational sport under the new regime. Finally, we regret to inform our listeners that the remains of Bathilda Bagshot have been discovered in Godric's Hollow. The evidence is that she died several months ago. The Order of the Phoenix informs us that her body showed unmistakable signs of injuries inflicted by Dark Magic. Listeners, I'd like to invite you now to join us in a minute's silence in memory of Ted Tonks, Dirk Cresswell, Bathilda Bagshot, Gornuk, and the unnamed, but no less regretted, Muggles murdered by the Death Eaters.'

Silence fell, and Harri, Ron, and Hermione did not speak. Half of Harri yearned to hear more, half of her was afraid of what might come next. She was also worried about Dean, hoping that he was alive and well.

'Thank you,' said Lee's voice. 'And now we can return to regular contributor Royal, for an update on how the new Wizarding order is affecting the Muggle world.'

'Thanks, River,' said an unmistakable voice, deep, measured, reassuring of Kingsley Shacklebolt. 'Muggles remain ignorant of the source of their suffering as they continue to sustain heavy casualties. However, we continue to hear truly inspirational stories of wizards and witches risking their own safety to protect Muggle friends and neighbours, often without the Muggles' knowledge. I'd like to appeal to all our listeners to emulate their example, perhaps by casting a protective charm over any Muggle dwellings in your street. Many lives could be saved if such simple measures are taken.'

'And what would you say, Royal, to those listeners who reply that in these dangerous times, it should be "Wizards first"?' asked Lee.

'I'd say that it's one short step from "Wizards first" to "Pure-bloods first", and then to "Death Eaters".' replied Kingsley. 'We're all human, aren't we? Every human life is worth the same, and worth saving.'

'Excellently put, Royal, and you've got my vote for Minister of Magic if we ever get out of this mess,' said Lee. 'And now, over to Romulus for our popular feature "Pals of Potter".'

'Thanks, River,' said the familiar voice of Remus Lupin.

'Romulus, do you maintain, as you have every time you've appeared on our program, that Harrietta Dumbledore is still alive?'

'I do,' said Remus firmly. 'There is no doubt at all in my mind that his death would be proclaimed as widely as possible by the Death Eaters if it had happened, because it would strike a deadly blow at the morale of those resisting the new regime. "The Girl Who Lived" remains a symbol of everything for which we are fighting: the triumph of good, the power of innocence, the need to keep resisting.'

'And what would you say to Harri if you knew she was listening, Romulus?'

'I'd tell her we're all with her in spirit,' said Remus, then hesitated slightly, 'And I'd tell her to follow her instincts, which are good and nearly always right.'

'Thanks Remus.' breathed Harri.

Ron and Hermione were shocked to see that her eyes were filled with tears.

'...and our usual update on those friends of Harrietta Dumbledore's who are suffering for their allegiance?' Lee was saying.

'Well, as regular listeners will know, several of the more outspoken supporters of Harrietta Dumbledore have now been imprisoned, including Xenophilius Lovegood, erstwhile editor of The Quibbler,' said Lupin.

'Oh no,' muttered Hermione.

'We have also heard within the last few hours that Rubeus Hagrid' - all three of them gasped, and so nearly missed the rest of the sentence - 'well-known gamekeeper at Hogwarts School, has narrowly escaped arrest within the grounds of Hogwarts, where he is rumoured to have hosted a "Support Harry Potter" party in his house. However, Hagrid was not taken into custody, and is, we believe, on the run.'

'Oh, Hagrid.' smiled Harri.

'I suppose it helps, when escaping from Death Eaters, if you've got a sixteen-foot-high half brother?' asked Lee.

'It would tend to give you an edge,' agreed Remus gravely.

'May I just add that while we here at Dumbledorerwatch applaud Hagrid's spirit, we would urge even the most devoted of Harri's supporters against following Hagrid's lead. "Support Harry Potter" parties are unwise in the present climate.'

'Indeed they are, Romulus,' said Lee. 'So we suggest that you continue to show your devotion to the Valkyrie with the lightning scar by listening to Dumbledorewatch! And now let's move to news concerning the wizard who is proving just as elusive as Harri Dumbledore. We like to refer to him as the Chief Death Eater -'

Harri sat up a little straighter.

' - and here to give his views on some of the more insane rumours circulating about him, I'd like to introduce a new correspondent. Rodent?'

'"Rodent"?' said the familiar voice of Fred Weasley...at least they thought it was Fred. 'I'm not being "Rodent", no way, I told you I wanted to be "Rapier"!'

'Oh, all right then, "Rapier," could you please give us your take on the various stories we've been hearing about the Chief Death Eater?'

'Yes, River, I can,' said Fred. 'As our listeners will know, unless they've taken refuge at the bottom of a garden pond or somewhere similar, You-Know-Who's strategy of remaining in the shadows is creating a nice little climate of panic. Mind you, if all the alleged sightings of him are genuine, we must have a good nineteen You-Know-Whos running around the place.'

'Which suits him, of course,' said Kingsley. 'The air of mystery is creating more terror than actually showing himself.'

'Agreed,' said Fred. 'So, people, let's try and calm down a bit. Things are bad enough without inventing stuff as well. For instance, this new idea that You-Know-Who can kill people with a single glance from his eyes. That's a basilisk, listeners. One simple test: Check whether the thing that's glaring at you has got legs. If it has, it's safe to look into its eyes, although if it really is You-Know-Who, that's still likely to be the last thing you ever do.'

Harri snorted, but whoever started the rumours comparing Voldemort to a basilisk were pretty close to being accurate.

'And the rumours that he keeps being sighted abroad?' asked Lee.

'Well, who wouldn't want a nice little holiday after all the hard work he's been putting in?' asked Fred. 'Point is, people, don't get lulled into a false sense of security, thinking he's out of the country. Maybe he is, maybe he isn't, but the fact remains don't count on him being a long way away if you're planning to take any risks. I never thought I'd hear myself say it, but safety first!'

'Thank you very much for those wise words, Rapier,' said Lee. 'Listeners, that brings us to the end of another Dumbledorewatch. We don't know when it will be possible to broadcast again, but you can be sure we shall be back. Keep twiddling those dials: The next password will be 'Mad-Eye.' Keep each other safe: Keep faith. Good night.'

The radio's dial twirled and the lights behind the tuning panel went out. Harri, Ron, and Hermione were still beaming. Hearing familiar, friendly voices was an extraordinary tonic.

'Did you hear what Fred said?' asked Harri excitedly. 'He's abroad! He's still looking for the Wand, I knew it!"

'Harri -' sighed a exasperated Hermione. She didn't want to have this conversation again.

'Come on, Hermione, why are you so determined not to admit it? Uncle Voldemort's after the Elder Wand!'

Before Hermione could answer, there was a loud crack sounded outside the tent.

'What the -'

The Sneakoscope on the table had lit up and begun to spin; they could hear voices coming nearer and nearer: rough, excited voices. Ron pulled the Deluminator out of his pocket and clicked it: Their lamps went out.

'Come out of there with your hands up!' came a rasping voice through the darkness. 'We know you're in there! You've got half a dozen wands pointing at you and we don't care who we curse!'

* * *

><p><strong>Facebook page: <strong>link on profile**  
>Written:<strong> 2 January 2012


	4. Capture and Escape

**CHAPTER FOUR: CAPTURE AND ESCAPE**

Harri turned and looked at her friends, before walking over to them and whispering, 'What should we do? Do you two what to try and run for it?'

'Harri, take a step back.' Hermione whispered to Harri, not answering her questions.

'Why?'

Hermione didn't answer. Instead, she aimed her wand at Harri's face and next thing she knew, she was in agony as her face began to swell up.

'What the bloody hell was that for?' demanded Harri.

However, before Hermione could answer, the tent flap opened and Harri, Ron and Hermione were pulled roughly from the tent. Once outside the tent, their pockets were searched and wands removed.

'Now, let's see who we've got,' said the familiar gloating voice of the werewolf, Greyback, from overhead

'I'll be needing butterbeer to wash this one down. What happened to you, ugly?' Greyback laughed, looking Harri up and down.

'Stung.' Harri muttered. 'Been Stung.'

'Yeah, looks like it.' said the man that was standing next to Greyback.

'What's your name?' snarled Greyback.

'Dudley.' said Harri.

'And your first name?'

'Lily. Lily Dudley.'

'Check the list, Scabior.' said Greyback, before moving sideways to look down at Ron, instead. 'And what about you, ginger?'

'Stan Shunpike.' said Ron.

'Like 'ell you are.' said the man called Scabior. 'We know Stan Shunpike, 'e's put a bit of work our way.'

There was thud.

'I'b Bardy,' said Ron, and Harry could tell that his mouth was full of blood. 'Bardy Weasley.'

'A Weasley?' rasped Greyback. 'So you're related to blood traitors even if you're not a Mudblood. And lastly, your pretty little friend...'

The relish in his voice made Harri's flesh crawl.

'Easy, Greyback.' said Scabior over the jeering of the others.

'Oh, I'm not going to bite just yet. We'll see if she's a bit quicker at remembering her name than Barny. Who are you, girly?'

'Penelope Clearwater.' said Hermione. She sounded terrified, but convincing.

'What's your blood status?'

'Half-Blood.' said Hermione.

'Easy enough to check,' said Scabior. 'But the 'ole lot of 'em look like they could still be 'ogwarts age -'

'We'b lebt,' answered Ron.

'Left, 'ave you, ginger?' said Scabior. 'And you decided to go camping? And you thought, just for a laugh, you'd use the Dark Lords name?'

'Nod a laugh, Aggiden.' said Ron, while Harri's eyes widened with realisation.

They must have tabooed Voldemort's name so who ever speaks it, the Death Eaters would be able to find them. It explained how they were found in the Muggle cafe.

'Accident?'

There was more jeering laughter.

'You know who used to like using the Dark Lord's name, Weasley?' growled Greyback, "The Order of the Phoenix. Mean anything to you?'

'Doh.'

'Well, they don't show the Dark Lord proper respect, so the name's been Tabooed. A few Order members have been tracked that way. We'll see. Bind them up with the other two prisoners!'

Someone yanked Harri up by the hair, dragged her a short way, pushed her down into a sitting position, then started binding her back-to-back with other people. When at last the man tying then had walked away, Harri whispered to the other prisoners.

'Anyone still got a wand?'

'No,' said Ron and Hermione from either side of him.

'If I can get to my boot, I might be able to grab my dagger and cut us free, but how to deal with - er - whoever these people are -'

'Harri?'

It was a new, but familiar voice. And it came from directly behind Harri, from the person tied to Hermione's left.

'Dean?'

'It is you! If they find out who they've got -! They're Snatchers, they're only looking for truants to sell for gold -'

'And they will get a small fortune for handing me over.' muttered Harri, before listening to the Snatchers.

'Not a bad little haul for one night.' Greyback was saying, as a pair of hobnailed boots marched close by Harri and they heard more crashes from inside the tent. 'A Mudblood, a runaway goblin, and these truants. You checked their names on the list yet, Scabior?' he roared.

'Yeah. There's no Lily Dudley un 'ere, Greyback.'

'Interesting,' said Greyback. 'That's interesting.'

He crouched down beside Harri.

'So you aren't wanted, then, Lily? Or are you on that list under a different name? What house were you in at Hogwarts?'

'Slytherin,' said Harri automatically.

'Funny 'ow they all thinks we wants to 'ear that.' leered Scabior out of the shadows. 'But none of 'em can tell us where the common room is.'

'It's in the dungeons.' said Harri clearly. 'You enter through the wall. It's full of skulls and stuff and it's under the lake, so the light's all green,'

There was a short pause.

'Well, well, looks like we really 'ave caught a little Slytherin.' said Scabior. 'Good for you, Lily, 'cause there ain't a lot of Mudblood Slytherins. Who's your father?'

'He works at the Ministry,' Harri lied fluently, knowing that her whole story would collapse with the smallest investigation, but on the other hand, she only had until her face regained its usual appearance before the game was up in any case. 'Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes.'

'You know what, Greyback,' said Scabior. 'I think there is a Dudley in there.'

Harri felt her jaw drop. She couldn't believe it. What a lucky coincidence.

'Well, well.' said Greyback. 'If you're telling the truth, ugly, you've got nothing to fear from a trip to the Ministry. I expect your father'll reward us just for picking you up.'

'Or you could just leave us here,' Harri suggested innocently.

'Hey!' came a shout from inside the tent. 'Look at this. Greyback!'

A dark figure came bustling toward them, and Harri saw a glint of silver to the light of their wands. They had found Gryffindor's sword.

I knew I should have kept it in my bag. Harri thought bitterly. She currently had a dagger in one of her boots and her shrunken bag in the other.

'Ve–e–ery nice,' said Greyback appreciatively, taking it from his companion. 'Oh, very nice indeed. Looks goblin-made, that. Where did you get something like this?'

'It's my father's,' Harri lied again, hoping against hope that it was too dark for Greyback to see the name etched just below the hilt. 'We borrowed it to cut firewood -'

''Ang on a minute, Greyback! Look at this, in the Prophet!'

As Scabior said it, Harri's scar, which was stretched tight across her distended forehead, burned savagely. More clearly than she could make out anything around her, she saw a towering building, a grim fortress, jet-black and forbidding: Voldemort's thoughts had suddenly become razor-Sharp again; he was gliding toward the gigantic building.

With a huge effort of will Harri closed her mind to Voldemort's thoughts, pulling herself back to where she sat after all she needed all her concentration to get them out of this mess.

'"'ermione Granger",' Scabior was saying, '"the Mudblood who is known to be travelling with 'arrietta Dumbledore".'

Harri's scar burned in the silence, but she made a supreme effort to keep herself present, not to slip into Voldemort's mind. She heard the creak of Greyback's boots as he crouched down, in front of Hermione.

'You know what, little girly? This picture looks a hell of a lot like you.'

'It isn't! It isn't me!'

Hermione's terrified squeak was as good as a confession. And people said that Harri was a terrible liar at times.

'"...known to be travelling with Harrietta Dumbledore",' repeated Greyback quietly.

A stillness had settled over the scene. Harri's scar was painful, but she struggled with all her strength against the pull of Voldemort's thoughts. It had never been so important to remain in her own right mind.

'Well, this changed things, doesn't it?' whispered Greyback, getting up and taking a couple of steps to where Harri sat, crouching down again to stare closely at her misshapen features.

'What's that on your forehead, _Lily_?' he asked softly, his breath foul in Harri's nostrils as he pressed a filthy finger to the taught scar.

'Don't you dare touch me!' growled Harri.

'Well, well, well. Looks like we've found the Dark Lord's runaway niece.' said an ecstatic Greyback.

They all took several steps backward, stunned by what they had done. Harri, still fighting to remain present in her own splitting head, could think of nothing to say to deny their claims. Fragmented visions were breaking across the surface of her mind - Voldemort was gliding around the high walls of the black fortress looking up, up to the topmost window, the highest tower—

'...To the Ministry?'

'To hell with the Ministry.' growled Greyback. 'They'll take the credit, and we won't get a look in. I say we take her straight to her uncle.'

'Who Severus? At 'ogwarts?

'Not that uncle!'

'Will you summon 'im? 'ere?' said Scabior, sounding terrified.

'No,' snarled Greyback, 'I haven't got—they say he's using the Malfoy's place as a base. We'll take the girl there.'

'But is that wise?' asked another snatcher. 'I've 'eard rumours that she was dating Malfoy's son. What if he helps her escape?'

'Draco wouldn't be stupid enough to do that. Besides, he's loyal to the Dark Lord.' said Greyback.

Harri flinched lightly at that. Would Draco just stand by and watch if she was tortured? Would he torture her himself? These horrid thoughts flashed through Harri's mind but they were all thrown away as Harri's scar seared again.

_The window was the merest slit in the black rock, not big enough for a man to enter... A skeletal figure was just visible through it, curled beneath a blanket sleeping. He forced himself through the slit of a window like a snake and landed, lightly as vapour inside the cell-like room. The emaciated figure stirred beneath its thin blanket and rolled over toward him, eyes opening in a skull of a face...The frail man stood up, great sunken eyes fixed upon Voldemort, and then he smiled as Voldemort sunk to his knees in front of him and said, 'Master.'_

Harri was brought back to reality as the prisoners were dragged to their feet. She was confused. Who was that man? And why would Voldemort call someone else master? It didn't make any sense.

'Grab hold and make it tight. I'll do Harrietta!" said Greyback, holding Harri close to his unclean body. 'On three! One - two - three - "

They Disapparated, pulling the prisoners with them, though the prisoners lurched into one another as they landed in a country lane. A pair of wrought-iron gates at the foot of what looked like a long drive.

One of the Snatchers strode to the gates and shook them.

'How do we get in? They're locked, Greyback, I can't - Madam Lestrange!' he greeted as Bellatrix walked towards the gate.

'What are you all doing here?' asked Bellatrix.

Greyback stepped forward with Harri.

'We found young Harrietta Dumbledore.' he said triumphantly.

'You sure?' frowned Bellatrix, looking closely at Harri through the gates.

'Maybe not one hundred percent sure.' admitted Greyback.

'We'll just have to get Draco to tell us then.' said Bellatrix as the gates swung open. 'He is home for the Christmas holidays. He should be able to tell us whether it is Harrietta or not.'

Harri and the others were forced inside and before she knew it, she was in the Malfoy's lounge room, on the floor, in front of a surprised, yet confused Draco Malfoy, who was currently lying on the couch reading.

'What is this?'

The dreadfully familiar, drawling voice of Lucius Malfoy fell on Harri's ears. Lucius then came into sight, standing behind the couch with Narcissa next to him. Draco was still looking straight at Harri, and Harri knew that he recognised her at once.

Of course he would. After all, he did recognise me as a Valkyrie when no one else could. Thought Harri.

'They say they've got Harrietta,' said Bellatrix's cold voice.

Everyone turned to look at Draco.

'Well?' Bellatrix asked eagerly, pushing Harri out of Harri's face.

'Well what? It's not Harri - I mean, Harrietta.' said Draco, before looking back to his book.

Harri stared at him. He recognised her, she knew he knew it was she, yet here he was lying to his parents and aunt.

'Look again, Draco. Look more closely.' ordered Lucius. 'If we are the ones who hand Harrietta over to the Dark Lord, everything will be forgiv -'

'Now, we won't be forgetting who actually caught him, I hope Mr. Malfoy?' said Greyback menacingly.

'Of course not, of course not!' said Lucius impatiently.

'Come on, sweetie.' Bellatrix said, taking the book off Draco, and gently pulling him down next to Harri to have a better look. 'Now, if this isn't who we think it is, Draco, and we call him. He'll kill us all. We need to be absolutely sure. And vise versa if we decide it's not her, and let her go.'

'It's not her.' said Draco, standing back up. 'I'd know her anywhere, even with a swollen face. How did it get like that anyway?'

'Yes, how did that happen?' asked Bellatrix.

'Happened in the forest.' shrugged Scabior. 'Probably ran -'

'What is that?' interrupted Bellatrix, looking at the sword of Gryffindor in one of the Snatcher's hands.

'Sword,' grunted the Snatcher holding it.

'Give it to me.'

'It's not yours, missus, it's mine, I reckon I found it.'

There was a bang and a flash of red light; Bellatrix had just Stunned the Snatcher. There was a roar of anger from his fellows: Scabior drew his wand.

'What d'you think you're playing at, woman?'

'GET OUT OF HERE NOW!" screamed Bellatrix, pointing her wand at them threateningly,

None of them were stupid enough to remain, so they left the sword and the other prisoners, before hurrying from the room.

'Where did you find this sword?' she snapped at Greyback, who had remained. 'The Dark Lord's brother sent it to my vault in Gringotts!'

'It was in their tent,' replied Greyback.

She nodded her head and Greyback left.

'Let's put the prisoners in the celler, along with Dumbledore, while I have a conversation with this one.' growled Bellatrix, looking down at the terrified Hermione.

'No!' shouted Ron. 'You can have me, keep me!'

Bellatrix hit him across the face: the blow echoed around the room.

'If she dies under questioning, I'll take you next,' she said. 'Blood traitor is next to Mudblood in my book. Take them downstairs,' she added to the two lower class Death Eater's who had just appeared, 'and make sure they are secure, but do nothing more to them—yet.'

Harri and the others were forced down a steep flight of stairs. At the bottom was a heavy door. One of the Death Eaters unlocked it with a tap of his wand, then forced them into a dank and musty room and left them in total darkness. The echoing bang of the slammed cellar door had not died away before there was a terrible, drawn out scream from directly above them.

'HERMIONE!' Ron bellowed, and he started to writhe and struggle against the ropes tying them together, minus Harri, who had managed to get her hands in front of her. 'HERMIONE!'

'How are we going to get out, Harri?' asked Dean, trying to ignore Ron and looking around at Harri. 'How are we to get - how on earth did you get free of those ropes?' he asked when he noticed that she was no longer bounded.

Harri smiled and showed him the dagger that she had taken out of her boot, as she walked over to the group.

'Ron, shut up and hold still while I free you. I don't want to accidently chop of a finger or anything.' said Harri, and when Ron stilled, she began untying Dean, Ron, and Griphook the Goblin.

Once they were free, Ron took out his Deluminator and clicked it, lighting the cellar they were currently in. Looking around, Harri saw Ollivander sitting with his back against the wall looking at them. Harri was about to say something to him when they heard Bellatrix's voice yelling at Hermione.

'You're lying, filthy Mudblood, and I know it! You have been inside my vault at Gringotts! Tell the truth, tell the truth!'

Another terrible scream.

'HERMIONE!'

'What else did you take? What else have you got? Tel me the truth or, I swear, I shall run you through with this knife!'

Ron was now trying to Disapparate without a wand.

'There's no way out, Ron,' said Harri, watching his fruitless efforts. 'The cellar is most likely completely escape-proof.'

When she saw Ron ignoring her she turned to Ollivander.

'I suppose that I'm correct in saying that?'

'Yes. I have tried everything thing. It is enchanted.' answered Ollivander.

'Fabulous,' muttered Harri, before going and examining every inch of the cellar while Dean and Griphook sat down and while Ron was half sobbing as he pounded the walls with his fists.

'How did you get into my vault?' they heard Bellatrix scream. 'Did that dirty little goblin in the cellar help you?'

'We only met him tonight!' Hermione sobbed. 'We've never been inside your vault...It isn't the real sword! It's a copy, just a copy!'

'A copy?' screeched Bellatrix. 'Oh, a likely story!'

'But we can find out easily!' came Lucius' voice. 'Draco, fetch the goblin, he can tell us whether the sword is real or not!'

Harri dashed across the cellar to where Griphook was huddled on the floor.

'Griphook,' she whispered urgently into the goblin's pointed ear, 'you must tell them that sword's a fake, they mustn't know it's the real one, Griphook, please -'

She could hear someone scuttling own the cellar steps; next moment, Draco opened the door and walked in before he was punch right in the face by Ron. Draco staggered back due to the force.

Eyes watering, Draco pointed his wand at Ron, glaring slightly, before indicating to the goblin to leave the cell. The moment they left the cell, Dean spoke.

'Nice punch, Ron.' he said approvingly.

'I can now understand why Hermione enjoyed - why are you glaring at me like that, Harri?' said Ron.

'Why did you punch him?' she demanded angrily.

'Maybe because he deserved it. He betrayed us, Harri and now look what he's helping Bellatrix do!'

'He's not helping them! All he did was get Griphook! Open your eyes Ron! He knows who I am!'

'But if he knows who you are, then why did he tell his family that it wasn't you?' Dean asked quietly.

'I don't know.' admitted Harri before a loud crack echoed inside the cellar.

'DOB - !'

Harri hit Ron on the arm to stop him shouting, and Ron looked terrified at his mistake. Dooby the House-elf had just Apparated into the cellar. Dobby's enormous, tennis—ball shaped eyes were wide; he was trembling from his feet to the tips of his ears. He was back in the home of his old masters, and it was clear that he was petrified.

'Princess Harrietta,' he squeaked in the tiniest quiver of a voice, 'Dobby has come to rescue you.'

'But how did you know that we needed rescuing?' asked a perplexed Harri.

'Dobby's old Master Draco called to Dobby.' answered Dobby. 'And while Dobby is a free elf, he decided to see what his old, kind master wanted.'

'Draco asked you to help us?' breathed a shocked Harri.

'Yes, Princess. Master Draco would die for his Princess.' said Dobby.

'Right. So you can Disapparate out of this cellar and you can take humans with you?' Harri asked Dobby, who nodded, his ears flapping.

'Okay. Dobby, I want you to grab Dean and Mr. Ollivander, and take them - take them to -'

'Bill and Fleur's,' said Ron. 'Shell Cottage on the outskirts of Tinworth!' Bill had told them where Fleur and him were planning on living before the wedding.

The elf nodded again.

'And then come back,' said Harri. 'Can you do that, Dobby?'

'Of course, Princess," whispered the little elf. He hurried over to Mr. Ollivander, took one of the wandmaker's hands in his own, then held out the other to Dean, who didn't move.

'Harri, I want to help you!' Dean whispered. 'I can't leave you here.

'Go! We'll see you at Bill and Fleur's.'

Dean reluctantly nodded and caught hold of the elf's outstretched fingers. There was another loud crack, and Dobby, Dean, and Ollivander vanished.

'What was that?' shouted Lucius Malfoy from over their heads. 'Did you hear that? What was that noise in the cellar?'

Harri and Ron stared at each other. Both holding their breath hoping that Lucius would shrug it off.

'Draco—no, call Wormtail! Make him go and check! I don't want you with another bloody nose!'

Footsteps crossed the room overhead, then there was silence. Harri knew that the people in the drawing room were listening for more noises from the cellar.

'We're going to have to try and tackle him,' she whispered to Ron. They had no choice: The moment anyone entered the room and saw the absence of three prisoners, they were lost.

The door flew open and for a split second Wormtail gazed into the apparently empty cellar, ablaze with light from the three miniature suns floating in midair. Then Harri and Ron launched themselves upon him. Ron seized Wormtail's wand arm and forced it upwards. Harri slapped a hand to his mouth, muffling his voice. Silently they struggled: Wormtail's wand emitted sparks; his silver hand closed around Harri's throat.

'What is it, Wormtail?' called Lucius Malfoy from above.

'Nothing! All fine!' Ron called back, in a passable imitation of Wormtail's wheezy voice, while Harri sat there struggling to breathe.

'You're going to kill me?' Harri choked, attempting to prise off the metal fingers, whilst glaring down at the man in front of her. 'After I saved your life? You owe me, Wormtail! And you owe my parents, Sirius and Remus for betraying them!'

The silver fingers slackened. Harri had not expected it: She wrenched herself free, gasping for air, keeping his hand over Wormtail's

mouth. She saw the ratlike man's small watery eyes widen with fear and surprise: He seemed just as shocked as Harri at what his hand had done, at the tiny, merciful impulse it had betrayed, and he continued to struggle more powerfully, as though to undo that moment of weakness.

'And we'll have that,' whispered Ron, tugging Wormtail's wand from his other hand.

Wandless, helpless, Pettigrew's pupils dilated in terror. His eyes had slid from Harri's face to something else. His own silver fingers were moving inexorably toward his own throat.

'No -'

Without pausing to think, Harri tried to drag back the hand, but there was no stopping it. The silver tool that Voldemort had given his most cowardly servant had turned upon its disarmed and useless owner; Pettigrew was reaping his reward for nearly strangling the Dark Lord's niece; he was being strangled before their eyes.

'No!'

Ron had released Wormtail too, and together he and Harri tried to pull the crushing metal fingers from around Wormtail's throat, but it was no use. Pettigrew was turning blue.

'Relashio!' said Ron, pointing the wand at the silver hand, but nothing happened; Wormtail's eyes rolled upward in his purple face; he gave a last twitch, and was still.

Harri and Ron looked at each other.

'Sirius will be happy.' said Harri, looking down at Wormtail's body, before leaving Wormtail's body on the floor as they ran up the stairs and back into the shadowy passageway leading to the lounge room. Cautiously they crept along it until they reached the lounge room door, which was ajar. Now they had a clear view of Bellatrix looking down at Griphook, who was holding Gryffindor's sword in his long-fingered hands. Hermione was lying at Bellatrix's feet. She was barely stirring, but Draco, unnoticed by his parents and aunt, was kneeling next to her, looking highly worried.

'Well?' Bellatrix said to Griphook. 'Is it the true sword?'

'No,' said Griphook. 'It is a fake.'

'Are you sure?' panted Bellatrix. 'Quite sure?'

'Yes,' said the goblin.

Relief broke across her face, all tension drained from it.

'Good,' she said, and with a casual flick of her wand she slashed another deep cut into the goblin's face, and he dropped with a yell at her feet. She kicked him aside. 'And now,' she said in a voice that burst with triumph, 'we call the Dark Lord!'

And she pushed back her sleeve and touched her forefinger to the Dark Mark.

At once, Harri's scar felt as though it had split open again. Her true surroundings vanished: She was Voldemort, and the skeletal wizard she was kneeling to, noticed her body tense up and saw the irritation that was probably present on her facial features. She was enraged at the summons she felt - she had warned them, she had told them to summon her for nothing less than Harrietta.

'What is wrong?' asked the skeletal wizard.

'My Death Eaters have summoned me.' Voldemort answered. 'They must have Harrietta -'

'I want that little girl out of the picture.' The skeletal wizard said suddenly.

'Master, she is only that...a little girl.'

'Mmm hmm.' said the other wizard, looking suspiciously down at Voldemort. 'With the Valkyrie out there, I will never be free. So next time you see her...kill her.'

'Master, please...' Voldemort said rising to his feet.

'My decision is final.' The wizard said firmly, before taking hold of the amulet around Voldemort's neck. The amulet was golden with it being a triangle with a black gem in the middle with a weird symbol underneath it, and before Harri could take in anymore details, she was abruptly brought back to her present surroundings as Ron burst into the drawing room, startling everyone. However, Bellatrix quickly regained her composure and grabbed Hermione roughly into a standing position and thrust her knife under Hermione's chin.

'Stop! Drop your wand!' she ordered to Ron, when she noticed that Harri wasn't carrying one, and her eyes soon widened when the Stinging Jinx wore off and Harri became her normal self again.

'What were you saying about being able to recognise Harrietta anywhere, Draco?' asked Lucius, glaring suspiciously at his son, who refused to meet his father's eyes.

'At least she is all bright and shiny and new again. Just in time for the Dark Lord.' Bellatrix said quietly. 'The Dark Lord is coming Harrietta -'

Bellatrix cut off and looked upwards as did everyone else in the room when they heard the sound of something being unscrewed. Looking up into the giant chandelier that was above them, they could see Dobby sitting there. Everyone in the room just stood there watching him, before jumping backwards as it came crashing down. Due to the distraction, Hermione ended up in Ron's arms, while Harri put Griphook and the sword of Gryffindor behind her, after she had gotten their wands, including Dean's.

'Stupid elf! You could have killed me!' yelled Bellatrix.

'Dobby never meant to kill. Dobby only meant to maim or seriously injure!' disagreed Dobby as he appeared next to Harri and the others.

Narcissa lost her temper and went to attack the group when Dobby clicked his fingers and the wand went flying in to his hand.

'How dare you take a witches wand!' yelled an outraged Bellatrix. 'How dare you defy your masters?'

Dobby's eyes hardened, before saying coldly, 'Dobby has no master! Dobby is a free elf! And Dobby has come to save Princess Harrietta...and his friends!' he said before Apparating them all away.

When they hit solid earth and could smell salty air, Harri fell to her knees, before getting back up and hurrying over to the weak Hermione, who was quietly sobbbing.

'Hermione! It's all right. We're safe. We're all safe!' said Harri, before looking around at Dobby when she heard him say her name quietly. 'DOBBY!' she screamed, running over to him when she saw his tunic covered in blood and Bellatrix's knife in his chest. 'No!'

The elf swayed slightly and Harri caught him before he fell, before taking the knife gently out of his chest.

'Such a beautiful place, to be with friends.' gasped Dobby. 'Dobby is happy to be with his friend, Princess Harrietta.'

'And you will stay with me, Dobby.' Harri said, taking off the Pendant of Alvara, and placing it gently to Dobby's chest. 'Please heal him!' she sobbed, tears pouring from her eyes. 'Please!'

Then, from underneath her hand, Hermione, Ron and Griphook watched in amazement as a white light could be seen and when Harri removed her hand, they could see that the knife wound was gone and in its place was a scar, the same shape as the Pendant.

'Thank you, Princess Harrietta.' smiled Dobby.

'There is no need to take me, Dobby.' cried Harri, holding Dobby closely to her. 'You're my friend and I couldn't bear it if anything happened to you!'

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Voldemort's Amulet is now on facebook**

**Facebook page:** link on profile  
><strong>Written:<strong> 2 January 2012

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT CLAIM OWNERSHIP OVER THE ORIGINAL COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL IN THIS STORY. THIS IS A NON-PROFIT FANDUB CREATED BY FANS, FOR FANS. NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT INTENDED. FAIR USE ONLY.**


	5. Gringotts

**CHAPTER FIVE: GRINGOTTS**

Harri carried Dobby to the nearby cottage, while Ron carried Hermione, with Griphook carrying the sword, following them. Dean and Ollivander were waiting outside with a worried a worried Bill and Fleur. The moment Bill saw Ron, he hurried over, relief spreading across his face, but he soon became concerned when he looked at the nearly unconscious Hermione. Fleur and Bill hurried them inside and began to take care of their wounds. The next morning, Harri told Bill had she needed to speak to both Ollivander and Griphook, however, Fleur disagree.

'No,' said Fleur. 'You will 'ave to wait, 'Arri. Zey are both too tired -'

'It can't wait.' Harri said firmly. 'I need to talk to them now. Privately - and separately. It's urgent.'

'Harri, what the hell's going on?' demanded Bill. 'You turn up here with a nearly dead house-elf, a goblin, a wand maker, Hermione looks as though she's been tortured, and Ron's just refused to tell me anything -'

'We can't tell you what we're doing.' said Harri flatly. 'You're in the Order, Bill; you know Grandfather left us a mission. We're not supposed to talk about it to anyone else.'

'All right. Who do you want to talk to first?' Bill said eventually.

'Griphook,' Harri said immediately.

'Follow me then,' said Bill as Fleur walked off giving her husband and Harri disapproving looks.

Once they were outside Griphook's room, Harri slipped quietly inside and saw the goblin quietly sitting in a chair, by the window, admiring the view, though he turned around to face Harri as she walked towards him, before watching as she took a seat on the windowsill across from him.

'How are you feeling?' she asked quietly.

'I'm alive,' shrugged Griphook.

'You probably don't remember -'

' - that I was the goblin who showed you to your vault, the first time you ever visited Gringotts?' said Griphook knowingly. 'I remember, young Valkyrie. Even amongst goblins, you are very famous.' He paused before continuing, 'You healed the elf,' he said, sounding unexpectedly curious. 'You were crying and telling him that he wasn't allowed to die.'

'Yes,' said Harri slowly, wondering where he was going with it.

'You also rescued me and brought me here.' continued Griphook. 'Most wizards, as you saw back that the Malfoys, couldn't care less about us goblins and house-elves. They think of us as lowly creatures that are beneath them and would never save one. But not you. You are a very unusual wizard, Harrietta.'

'I guess I understand that while you are not human, you still have a brain and feelings. But whatever the reason, I will always see other magical creatures as equals.' shrugged Harri. 'Listen Griphook, the reason for me disturbing you is that I need help, and you're the only one I can turn to for help.'

'And what kind of help would that be?' inquired Griphook, still looking at Harri curiously.

'I need to break into a Gringotts vault.'

'Break into a Gringotts vault?' repeated the goblin, looking at Harri as though she was mad. 'It is impossible.'

'No it's not. My uncle broke into vault seven hundred and thirteen to try and steal the Philosopher's Stone on my birthday, seven years ago, remember?' argued Harri.

'The vault was empty at the time as you well know,' snapped Griphook, and Harri understood that even though Griphook had let Gringotts, he was offended at the idea of its defences being breached. 'Its protection was minimal.'

'This is why I need your help. The vault I need to get into isn't empty, and I'm guessing its protection will be pretty powerful,' said Harri. 'It belongs to the Lestranges.'

'You have no chance,' said Griphook flatly. 'No chance at all. _If you seek beneath our floors, a treasure that was never yours_ -'

'_Thief, you have been warned, beware _- yeah, I know, I remember,' said Harri. 'But I'm not trying to get myself any treasure; I'm not trying to take anything for personal gain. Can you believe that?'

'The first time I met you, Harrietta Dumbledore, I realised that you were not like other humans, and not because I recognised you as a Valkyrie.' said Griphook. 'We goblins have known about your family since your bloodline last sat on the throne. As such, we knew about you being the princess and when I was called upon to show you to your vault, I was expecting to see a spoilt little girl who would treat us like trash. Therefore, you can imagine what a shock it was to find you dressed in rags and even greater shock when you greeted me with a small smile. At first, I thought that I must have imagined it, but I none the less kept a curious eye on you as we headed down to your vaults. Then, as I opened you vault and showed you your small fortune, I watched your facial features very carefully. I was waiting for the look of greed that most wizards get...but it never came. You just seemed shocked and eager to learn as that half-giant you were with explained everything to you. And it is for this reason that if there was a wizard of whom I would believe that they did not seek personal gain,' said Griphook finally, 'it would be you, young Valkyrie. Goblins and elves are not used to the protection or the respect that you have shown last night.'

'What do you seek within the Lestranges' vault?' he asked, after a few moments of silence. 'The sword that lies inside it is a fake. This is the real one.' he added, pointing to the Sword of Gryffindor, which was against the wall. 'I think that you already know this. You asked me to lie for you back there.'

'You're right. There is something else in there, isn't there, that once belonged to one of the founders of Hogwarts?'

'It is against our code to speak of the secrets of Gringotts. We are the guardians of fabulous treasures. We have a duty to the objects placed in our care, which were, so often, wrought by our fingers.' said Griphook uncomfortably. 'However, I will do it, but for a price.'

'Name it.'

'I want the sword.'

Harri closed her eyes slowly before opening them again and looking straight at Griphook.

'Are you sure that you don't want something else?' she asked desperately.

'That is my price.'

'Okay, I am willing to give you the sword, but only after I've finished using it, for what I'm currently looking for, the sword is the only thing that can destroy it for it is encrypted with basilisk venom.' said Harri. 'But I swear that once they have been destroyed, I will personally make a trip to Gringotts and give it to you.'

'And I will hold you to that promise.' said Griphook. 'Shall we begin planning?'

'Nah, not just yet see my friends - the red-head boy I was with and the other girl - will have to go with us for they are helping me, but I promise they won't steal anything.' she added quickly as Griphook's eyes widened. 'Anyway, I will need to wait for them before we can plan anything.'

'Very well, Harrietta Dumbledore.'

Harri stood up and smiled down at him.

'I'll leave you to get some rest,' she said before leaving the room, before nearly walking into Ron and Hermione who were standing outside.

'Hermione! Are you all right?' Harri asked, hugging her gently. 'You were so brave and amazing coming up with that story when she was hurting you like that!'

'I'm fine. Bill said that you were up here talking to the goblin.'

'Yes,' said Harri before explaining to them the deal she had just struck with Griphook and how they were going to break into Gringotts.

'Harri,' whispered Hermione, 'are you saying what I think you're saying? Are you saying there's a Horcrux in the Lestranges vault?'

'Yes,' said Harri. 'Bellatrix was terrified when she thought we'd been in there, she was beside herself. Why? What did she think we'd seen, what else did she think we might have taken? Something she was petrified my uncle would find out about.'

'But I thought we were looking for places You-Know-Who's been, places he's done something important?' said Ron, looking baffled. 'Was he ever inside the Lestranges' vault?'

'I don't know whether he was ever inside Gringotts,' admitted Harri. 'But that's not the point. Remember how he gave Mr Malfoy the diary to keep safe? Well, I'm thinking that he's done the same with one of his other Horcruxes with Bellatrix and her husband. After all, Gringotts is one of the safest places in the world for anything you want to hide, Hagrid told me . . . except for Hogwarts. Anyway, I need to speak to Ollivander. Do you want to join me?'

'Sure.' They muttered before they followed her across the little landing and knocked upon the door opposite Griphook's. A weak 'Come in!' answered them.

The wand maker was lying on the twin bed farthest from the window.

'Mr. Ollivander, I'm sorry to disturb you,' apologised Harri, sitting down next to his bed.

'My dear girl,' Ollivander's voice was feeble. 'You rescued us, I thought we would die in that place, I can never thank you...never thank you...enough.'

'We were glad to do it.' smiled Harri. 'I'm actually here to ask you about a legend - well, legends - about a wand that has been passed from hand to hand by murder. You know of the wand I speak? The one that my uncle is after.'

Ollivander turned pale.

'I - how?' croaked Ollivander, and he looked appealingly at Ron and Hermione for help. 'How do you know this?'

'Valkyrie intuition.' lied Harri. 'You told him about the wand that changes hands by murder?'

'Yes, he asked,' whispered Ollivander, still looking highly confused as to how Harri knew all this. 'He wanted to know everything I could tell him about the wand variously known as the Deathstick, the Wand of Destiny, or the Elder Wand.'

Harri glanced sideways at Hermione. She looked flabbergasted.

'The Dark Lord,' said Ollivander in hushed and frightened tones, 'had always been happy with the wand I made him - yew and phoenix feather, thirteen-and-a-half inches - until now. Now he seeks another, more powerful wand. A wand he is determined to possess it because he believes it will make him truly invulnerable.'

'You - you really think this wand exists, then, Mr Ollivander?' asked Hermione.

'Oh yes,' said Ollivander. 'Yes, it is perfectly possible to trace the wand's course through history. There are gaps, of, course, and long ones, where it vanishes from view, temporarily lost or hidden; but always it resurfaces. It has certain identifying characteristics that those who are learned in wandlore recognize. There are written accounts, some of them obscure, that I and other wand makers have made it our business to study. They have the ring of authenticity.'

'So you—you don't think it can be a fairy tale or a myth?' Hermione asked hopefully.

'No,' said Ollivander. 'Whether it needs to pass by murder, I do not know. Its history is bloody, but that may be simply due to the fact that it is such a desirable object, and arouses such passions in wizards. Immensely powerful, dangerous in the wronghands, and an object of incredible fascination to all of us who study the power of wands.'

'We thank you for your time, Mr Ollivander.' smiled Harri, before getting up, leaving and going outside with Ron and Hermione right behind her.

It was when she was out there that she entered Voldemort's mind once more, as he entered Hogwarts, heading straight to his father's tomb. His master had told him that he needed to get the Elder Wand, which his master had lost, in his battle against Albus. Once at his father's tomb, Voldemort raised his wand and tomb split open from head to foot. The shrouded figure was as long as thin as it had been in life. He raised the wand again. The wrappings fell open. The face was translucent, pale, sunken, yet almost perfectly preserved. They had left his spectacles on the crooked nose: He felt amused derision. Albus' hands were folded upon his chest, and there it lay, clutched beneath them, buried with him. Had the old fool imagined that marble or death would protect the wand? Had he thought that his oldest son would be scared to violate his tomb? The spiderlike hand swooped and pulled the wand from his father's grasp, and as he took it, a shower of sparks flew from its tip, sparkling over the corpse of its last owner, ready to serve a new master at last.

'I wonder where the new wand is now.' said Ron, not noticing, along with Hermione, that Harri had not heard a word of their previous conversation. 'Who it belongs to.'

'I know where it is.' Harri admitted. 'He has. You-Know-Who has it now. I just watched as he stole it from Grandfather's tomb.'

**-UNMASKED MYSTERY-**

Over the next two months, Harri, Ron and Hermione, spend practically every single waking hour with Griphook, planning how to break into Gringotts. They remained shut in the cupboard-like room for hours at a time for there was problem after problem to overcome, not least of which was that their store of Polyjuice Potion was greatly depleted, and they only appeared for mealtimes, during which time, Harri noticed Bill's eyes on the four of them at the table, thoughtful and concerned.

During the many months of planning, Dobby remained with them, happily helping Fleur around the house, while Dean was smuggled back to Hogwarts - he had told Harri that Dumbledore's Army was up and running again - while Ollivander went to stay with the other Weasleys at Aunt Muriel's place. However, the biggest surprise came one cold, rainy day, when Remus arrived and announced that Tonks had given birth to a baby boy and had made Harri the godmother. It was one of the happiest days of Harri's life, but her happiness soon disappeared as it was replaced were nerves as the day of the Gringotts break in was upon her.

The morning of the break in - before anyone else was up - Hermione took the remaining Polyjuice potion and using the hair that Bellatrix had left on her clothes, transformed into Bellatrix Lestrange, before meeting Harri, Griphook and Ron outside.

Harri looked up from what she was doing as Bellatrix Lestrange was striding across the lawn toward them. As she walked, she was tucking the small, beaded bag into the inside pocket of another set of the old robes they had taken from Grimmauld Place. After disguising Ron, the four of them Apparated to a small alley in Diagon Alley, not too far away from the bank.

While Harri and Griphook appeared in the shadows, Hermione and Ron appeared in the light. As a result, a passing Death Eater noticed her.

'Madam Lestrange,' he greeted, before starting to move on.

'Good morning,' greeted Hermione, making the Death Eater pause and look at her, before shaking his head and moving on.

'Good morning? Good morning!' repeated an outraged Griphook. 'You're Bellatrix Lestrange not some school girl!'

'Hey, easy.' Ron growled threateningly.

'If she gives us away, we'd be better off cutting our own throats with that sword!' snapped Griphook.

'Griphook's right.' said Harri as she pulled her Invisibility Cloak out of her bag. 'You were too polite. You need to treat everyone like they're scum!'

'You're both right. I was being stupid.' muttered Hermione.

'Well, no harm done. Let's get this over and done with.' said Harri, handing the cloak to Ron as she bent down so Griphook could climb on her back.

Griphook hesitated, before climbing onto her back. Once on, Ron threw the Invisibility cloak over them, and then the four of them headed to Gringotts.

Gringotts was silent except for the scratching of the quills the goblins were writing with and the sound of Hermione's boots on the polished floor. They stopped at the end of the hall in front of an old goblin, who was writing something.

Hermione gave a little cough.

'Madam Lestrange!' said the goblin, looking up and was evidently startled when he saw whom it was. 'How - how may I help you today?'

'I wish to enter my vault,' said Hermione.

The old goblin seemed to recoil a little. Harri glanced around. Several other goblins had looked up from their work to stare at Hermione and Harri noticed that a couple of the guards that were stationed around the hall had begun to walk towards them.

'You have...identification?' asked the goblin.

'Identification? I have never been asked for identification before!' said an outraged Hermione.

'They know!' Griphook whispered urgently in Harri's ear, 'They must have been warned there might be an imposter!'

'In that case,' muttered Harri, quietly moving behind the goblin and whispering 'Imperio!'

'How right you are, Madam Lestrange,' said the old goblin, surprising the other goblins in the room. 'So, if you will follow me, Madam Lestrange,' said the goblin, hopping down off his stool and vanishing from sight. 'I shall take you to your vault.'

He appeared around the end of the counter, jogging happily toward them - followed by a silent Harri - and he hurried toward one of the many doors leading off the hall. Once safely out of sight, Harri removed her invisibility cloak and Griphook hoped off her bag.

'We're in trouble; they suspect,' Harri told Rona and Hermione. 'He's Imperiused,' she added, in response to Hermione and Ron's confused queries about the old goblin.

'What do we do?' asked Ron. 'Shall we get out now, while we can?'

'If we can,' said Hermione, looking back toward the door into the main hall, beyond which who knew what was happening.

'No, we go on. If we don't do it now, it will be moved and then we will be worse off.' Harri said firmly.

'We'll need Bogrod to control the cart; I no long have the authority.' said Griphook, motioning to the old goblin.

Harri pointed her wand at Bogrod, who whistled to summon a little cart that came trundling along the tracks toward them out of the darkness. Harri was sure she could hear shouting behind them in the main hall as they all clambered into it, Bogrod in front of Griphook, Harri, Ron, and Hermione crammed together in the back. With a jerk the cart moved off, gathering speed, then the cart began twisting and turning through the labyrinthine passages, sloping downward all the time.

They were deeper than Harri had ever penetrated within Gringotts; they took a hairpin bend at speed and saw ahead of them, with seconds to spare, a waterfall pounding over the track. Harri heard Griphook shout, 'No!' but there was no braking. They zoomed through it. Then, with an awful lurch, the cart flipped over and they were all thrown out of it.

Thankfully, Hermione had cast a Cushioning charm before they hit the rocky ground below.

'What was that and why are Hermione and Ron back to the real selves?' asked Harri as she clambered to her feet.

'The Thief's Downfall!' said Griphook as he to clambering to his feet and looking back the deluge onto the tracks. 'It washes away all enchantment, all magical concealment! They know there are imposers in Gringotts, they have set off defences against us!'

'What the devil are all of you doing down here? Thieves!' yelled Bogrod, before turning on Griphook, but Harri had him under the Imperious Curse once more.

'Let's hope Mad-Eye never finds out that I just did that.' said Harri. 'Lead the way, Griphook.

They followed Griphook up the side of the rocky mountain before stopping as they saw a gigantic dragon, which was tethered to the ground in front of them, barring access to four or five of the deepest vaults in the place. The beast's scales had turned pale and flaky during its long incarceration under the ground, with chains wrapped around its neck, which were attached to the wall. Harri's eyes narrowed as she saw that the chains had rubbed away at the poor beast's skin.

'It is partially blind,' panted Griphook, 'but even more savage for that. However, we have the means to control it.' he added, handing Ron a small metal instrument, known as a Clankers, that when shaken made a long ringing noise like miniature hammers on anvils. Griphook had one too, and he began to shake it as he approached the dragon, which Ron soon copied, and the moment the poor dragon heard the sound, it began to cower.

'It's been trained to expect pain when it hears the noise,' explained Griphook.

'That's barbaric!' snapped Hermione, but Griphook didn't seem to care.

Once they were outside Bellatrix's vault, Ron and Griphook stopped shaking the Clankers and Harri forced Bogrod's hand up against the vaults door, before they all hurried inside, closing the vault door behind them.

'Lumos!' muttered Harri, and she heard Ron and Hermione do the same behind her.

'Blimey,' muttered Ron, looking wide eyed at the amount of gold the Lestranges had.

Harri looked at it all in disgust as she walked carefully through the vault, looking for Hufflepuff's cup or something of Ravenclaws. When she got to the back of the vault, she was about to tell the others that she couldn't see them when, out the corner of her eye, she saw it. She saw Hufflepuff's cup, but it was too high up for her to reach.

'I found it!' yelled Harri, ignoring the noise Hermione and Ron were making in the background. 'The only problem is that I'm not tall another to reach it without standing on someth - what are you two do - whoa!' said Harri turning around to see Hermione and Ron surrounded by goblets which seemed to be multiplying. 'What did you do?'

'I accidently knocked over a goblet!' said Hermione.

'They have added Germino Curse!' said Griphook, standing safely by the door with Bogrod. 'Everything you touch will multiply.'

Harri stood there for a moment watching as Ron and Hermione desperately tried to stand still, before taking Gryffindor's sword out of her bag and climbing - with great difficulty - the vault wall to get the cup. When she got it, she jumped lightly back down and stabbed the sword through it, which gave a high pitch scream, startling Griphook.

'Let's get out of here!' yelled Harri, and the five of them, quickly exited the vaults, leaving the destroyed cup behind.

'Thieves! Thieves!' yelled the goblins running towards them, followed by the Gringotts guards.

They quickly jumped behind the pillars.

'Great,' muttered Harri, before looking down at the two goblins she was trying to protect. 'Griphook, with your permission, I'm going to stun both you and Bogrod -'

'WHAT?' yelled an outraged Griphook.

'- so when they find you and revive you, you can pretend that you were under the Imperious Curse, like Bogrod.'

'Oh.' said Griphook, understanding now. 'Fine...I'm probably going to regret this, but go ahead.'

'I will see you again.' said Harri, before stunning both goblins.

'Now what do we do?' asked Hermione, while Ron yelled, 'Stupefy!' at the advancing guards, that were trying to protect themselves from the dragon to. They didn't have any Clankers. 'We can't just stand here!'

'You're the brilliant one!' Ron yelled at her. 'Bloody hell, Harri! Warn me next time you're planning on blowing something off its hinges!' he added, when Harri destroyed the railing in between Ron's pillar and her own.

'You want a plan, here's my plan.' she said, grinning like a lunatic, before jumping onto the dragons back.

'Does she have a death wish or something?' Ron yelled to Hermione.

'Hurry up and get on it!' yelled Harri when she noticed Ron and Hermione still looking at her.

Hermione and Ron hesitated for a second later, before joining her on the back of the dragon.

'Relashio!' Harri yelled, aiming her wand at the chain that held the dragon to the wall. The cuffs broken open with loud bangs.

For a moment, the dragon didn't realise that it was free, but when it did, it gave a roar and reared, before climbing out of Gringotts and taking flight across Diagon Alley.

* * *

><p><strong>Facebook page:<strong> link on profile**  
>Written: <strong> 3 January 2012

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT CLAIM OWNERSHIP OVER THE ORIGINAL COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL IN THIS STORY. THIS IS A NON-PROFIT FANDUB CREATED BY FANS, FOR FANS. NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT INTENDED. FAIR USE ONLY.**


	6. Return to Hogwarts

**CHAPTER SIX: RETURN TO HOGWARTS**

Harri didn't know how long she, Hermione and Ron hung on to the dragon as it flew across England, but eventually they arrived at a hilly country side with a huge lake, and as the dragon flew over it, Harri called out to the others to jump off, before doing so herself.

The lake water was cold and they struggled to swim to shore. Once safe from drowning, they dried their clothes and looked around.

'Where do you reckon we are?' asked Ron.

'No idea...oh, I hope my plan to stun Griphook worked. I hope he's alright.' said Harri.

'Well, on the upside,' said Ron finally, lying down on the ground, 'we've destroyed another Horcrux. On the downside -'

' - we have no idea where to look for the next one,' concluded Harri.

Each of them fell silent.

'What are we going to do?' said Hermione finally. 'He'll know, won't he? You- Know-Who will know we know about his Horcruxes!'

'Maybe they'll be too scared to tell him!' said Ron hopefully,

Maybe they'll cover up -'

'Argh!' gasped Harri, hands flying to her scar. Voldemort was angry, that angry that she was forced once more into his mind.

Voldemort was standing in a dimly lit room, and a semicircle of wizards faced him, and on the floor at his feet knelt a small, quaking figure.

'What did you say to me?' His voice was high and cold, but fury and fear burned inside him. The one thing that he had dreaded—but it could not be true, he could not see how...

The goblin was trembling, unable to meet the red eyes high above his.

'Say it again!' murmured Voldemort. 'Say it again!'

'M-my Lord,' stammered the goblin, its black eyes wide with terror, 'm-my Lord...we t–tried to st–stop them...Im–impostors, my Lord...broke—broke into the—into the Lestranges' vault...'

'Impostors? What impostors? I thought Gringotts had ways of revealing impostors? Who were they?'

'It was...it was...your -your niece, Harrietta Dumbledore and t–two accomplices...'

'And she took?' he said, his voice rising, a terrible fear gripping him, 'Tell me! What did she take?'

'N-nothing, my Lord...'

'Are you telling me, that Harrietta broke into the Lestranges vault yet took nothing? What did she do?'

'She - she destroyed a - a s–small golden c–cup m–my Lord...' said the goblin, handing him that destroyed cup.

Voldemort accepted the cup, examined and then a scream of rage left him.

How was it possible that she could have discovered his secret? She was only a child, still naive of the dark magic in the world.

The Elder Wand slashed through the air and green light erupted through the room; the kneeling goblin rolled over dead; the watching wizards scattered before him, terrified. Bellatrix and Lucius Malfoy threw others behind them in their race for the door, and again and again his wand fell, and those who were left were slain, all of them, for bringing him this news, for hearing about the golden cup.

Alone amongst the dead he stomped up and down, and they passed before him in vision: his treasures, his safeguards, his anchors to immortality - the diary and now the cup was destroyed. What if, what if, his niece knew about the others? Could she know, had she already acted, had she traced more of them? Was his father at the root of this? The father who had always suspected him; the father, dead on his orders; the father, whose wand was his now, yet who reached out from the ignominy of death through the girl, the girl—

His master was right. If they were to take over and rule the wizarding world, Harrietta would have to be removed from the picture. But in the mean time, he had to think about the protection of his Horcruxes that his master had ordered him to create. The girl would not know of the ring in the Gaunt shack, nor would she know about the locket in the cave. As for the school: He alone knew where in Hogwarts he had stowed the Horcrux, because he alone had plumed the deepest secrets of that place...And there was still Nagini, who must remain close now, no longer sent to do his bidding, under his protection...But to be sure, to be utterly sure, he must return to each of his hiding places, he must redouble protection around each of his Horcruxes... A job, like the quest for the Elder Wand, which he must undertake alone...

Harri's eyes flew open as she wrenched herself back to the present. She was lying on the bank of the lake in the setting sun, and Ron and Hermione were looking down at her. Judging by their worried looks, her sudden excursion into Voldemort's mind had not passed unnoticed.

'He knows.' Harri muttered, answering the question Ron and Hermione were no doubt thinking. 'He knows that we broke into Gringotts, he knows what we did, and he knows that we're hunting his Horcruxes. But there's more, one of them is at Hogwarts and I'd bet you anything it has something to do with Ravenclaw. That means we have to go there now! Before he goes and checks on it!'

'What? No Harri, we have to plan, we have to -'

'Hermione, seriously, when have any of our plans actually worked?' interrupted Harri.

'She has a point. Remember Norbert? Aragog? Our journey to the Ministry? Not to mention our last escapade.' said Ron. 'But there's one problem...Severus is headmaster now, and he's not exactly going to let you walk straight into Hogwarts, and he's bond to have the secret passages sealed off.'

'We'll use the invisibility cloak and find some way in through Hogsmeade.' said Harri.

'Harri, we've too big to all fit under the cloak now -' began Hermione.

'It'll be dark, no one's going to notice our feet.' said Harri.

**-UNMASKED MYSTERY-**

The moment the trio arrived in Hogsmeade, the air was rent by a scream that sounded like Voldemort's when he had realised the cup had been destroyed: and the door of the Three Broomsticks burst open and a dozen cloaked and hooded Death Eaters dashed into the streets, their wands aloft.

'Accio Cloak!' roared one of the Death Eaters.

Harri seized its folds, but it did not attempt to escape. The Summoning Charm had not worked on it.

'Not under your wrapper, then, Harrietta?' yelled the Death Eater who had tried the charm and then to his fellows. 'Spread now. She's here.'

Six of the Death Eaters ran toward them: Harri, Ron and Hermione backed as quickly as possible down the nearest side street, and the Death Eaters missed them by inches. '

'They were ready for us,' whispered Harri. 'They set up that spell to tell them we'd come. I reckon they've done something to keep us here, trap us. Let's head to Hog's Head.'

''Kay,' said Ron, while Hermione nodded.

Quietly, but quickly, they headed to Hog's Head. One there, Harri led them round the back and knocked on the door.

'Who's there?' demanded Aberforth, when he opened the door and saw no one there.

'It's me, Harrietta Jasmine Lilliana Dumbledore, with Ronald Bilius Weasley and Hermione Jean Granger.' said Harri, taking off the Pendant of Alvara as proof of who she said she was and showed him.

'Oh, Harri...quick, come inside!' said Aberforth, stepping aside and then ushering them downstairs into his living room where a portrait of his sister, Ariana hung.

'You bloody fools,' he said, bringing Harri into a hug. 'What were you thinking, coming here?'

Before Harri could answer, they heard someone banging on the door. Groaning, Aberforth, walked back up stairs to see who it was.

'What do you want?' they heard Aberforth demand.

'We need to search your premises to make sure that Harrietta Dumbledore isn't hiding anywhere.' declare a Death Eater.

'Search my premises.' repeated an outraged Aberforth. 'Listen, you are not coming in here whether you like it all not. Both my nephews came here a few months ago and didn't find her either. So, if you want to search here again, I suggest you go tell your master that his uncle looks forward to his visit. Now, if you excuse me, I would like to finish my dinner in peace.' They then heard the door being shut on their faces.

Aberforth was down stairs moments later.

'Bloody Death eaters,' he muttered. 'Sometimes I wish I could put Tom and Severus over my knee...' he broke off shaking his head. 'So what are you doing here?' he asked as he got some food ready for them.

'We need to get into Hogwarts.' Harri said bluntly.

'Don't be stupid, Harri!' said Aberforth. 'Have you got a death wish?'

'We've got to,' said Harri.

'No. What you've got to do,' said Aberforth, leaning forward, 'is to get as far from here as from here as you can.'

'You don't understand, Uncle Aberforth. We've got to get into the castle. Grandfather wanted us -'

'My brother wanted a lot of things,' said Aberforth, 'and people had a habit of getting hurt while he was carrying out his grand plans. You get away from this school, Harri, and out of the country if you can. Somewhere where your grandmother and great uncles don't have to worry about you.'

'You don't understand.' said Harri again. 'So please trust me when I say that I know what I'm doing!'

Aberforth gazed at Harry with eyes that were so extraordinarily like his brother's. At last he cleared his throat and approached the portrait of Ariana.

'You know what to do,' he said.

She smiled, turned, and walked away, not as people in portraits usually did, one of the sides of their frames, but along what seemed to be a long tunnel painted behind her. They watched her slight figure retreating until finally she was swallowed by the darkness.

'There's only one way in now,' said Aberforth. 'You must know they've got all the old secret passageways covered at both ends, dementors all around the boundary walls, regular patrols inside the school from what my sources tell me. The place has never been so heavily guarded. How you expect to do anything once you get inside it, with Severus in charge and the Carrows as his deputies...well, that's your lookout, isn't it? You say you know what you are doing, and I reluctantly trust your judgement.'

Harri turned her attention back to the portrait of her great aunt and watched as a tiny white dot reappeared at the end of the painted tunnel, and now Ariana was walking back toward them, growing bigger and bigger as she came, but there was somebody else with her now, someone taller than she was, who was limping along, looking excited. Larger and larger the two figures grew, until only their heads and shoulders filled the portrait. Then the whole thing swang forward on the wall like a little door, and the entrance to a real tunnel was revealed. And out of it, his hair overgrown, his face cut, his robes ripped, clambered the real Neville Longbottom, who gave a roar of delight, leapt down from the mantelpiece and yelled.

'I knew you'd come! I knew it, Harri!'

'Neville - what the - how - ?' stammered Harri as Neville embraced her, before spotting Ron and Hermione and hugging them too. 'Neville, what's happened to you?'

'What? This?' Neville dismissed his injuries with a shake of the head. 'This is nothing, Seamus is worse. You'll see. Shall we get going then? Oh,' he turned to Aberforth, 'Ab, there might be a couple more people on the way.'

Aberforth nodded, and sat back down to finish his dinner.

Neville held out his hand to Hermione and helped her climb up onto the mantelpiece and into the tunnel, Ron followed, then Neville. Harri addressed Aberforth.

'Thank you, Uncle.'

'Look after 'em,' said Aberforth gruffly.

'I will,' promised Harri, before she too clambered up onto the mantelpiece and through the hole behind Ariana's portrait. There were smooth stone steps on the outside: It looked as though the passageway had been there for years. Brass lamps hung from the walls and the earthy floor was worn and smooth; as they walked, their shadows rippled, fanlike, across the wall.

'How long's this been here?' Ron asked as they set off. 'It isn't on the Marauder's Map, is it, Harri? I thought there were only seven passages in and out of the school?'

'They sealed off all of those before the start of the year,' said Neville. 'There's no chance of getting through any of them now, not with the curses over the entrances and Death Eaters and dementors waiting at the exits.' He started walking backward, beaming, drinking them in. 'Never mind that stuff...Is it true? Did you break into Gringotts? Did you escape on a dragon? It's everywhere, everyone's talking about it. Terry Boot got beaten up by Carrow for yelling about it in the Great Hall at dinner!'

'Yeah, it's true,' said Harri.

Neville laughed gleefully,

'What did you do with the dragon?'

'Released it into the wild,' said Ron.

'But what have you been doing? People have been saying you've just been on the run, Harri, to annoy your uncle, but I don't think so. I think you've been up to something.'

'You're right,' said Harri, 'but tell us about Hogwarts, Neville, we haven't heard anything.'

'It's been...well, it's not really like Hogwarts anymore,' said Neville, the smile fading from his face as he spoke. 'Do you know about the Carrows?'

'Those two Death Eaters who teach here?'

'They do more than teach,' said Neville. 'They're in charge of all discipline. They like punishment, the Carrows.'

'Like Umbridge?'

'Nah, they make her look tame. The other teachers are all supposed to refer us to the Carrows if we do anything wrong. They don't, though, if they can avoid it, but even then, your grandmother never does. She doesn't hold back in giving them a piece of her mind...'

'Is she alright? They haven't hurt her or anything?' Harri asked quickly.

'Well...she did snap at them when they put a first year girl under the Cruciatus Curse, which then got transferred to her. We all had to watch on as she scream, none of us being able to help her, when all of a sudden it was broken and both the Carrows were thrown against a wall. Your uncle was standing there furious, followed by a slightly amused You-Know-Who. No one has dared raised a hand against her since. Anyway, Amycus, the bloke, he teaches what used to be Defence Against the Dark Arts, except now it's just Dark Arts. We're supposed to practice the Cruciatus Curse on people who've earned detentions -'

'What?'

'Yeah,' said Neville. 'That's how I got this one,' he pointed at a particularly deep gash in his cheek, 'I refused to do it. Some people are into it, though; Crabbe and Goyle love it. First time they've ever been top in anything, I expect. Alecto, Amycus' sister, teaches Muggle Studies, which is compulsory for everyone. We've all got to listen to her explain how Muggles are like animals, stupid and dirty, and how they drove wizards into hiding by being vicious toward them, and how the natural order is being re-established. I got this one,' he indicated another slash to his face, 'for asking how much Muggle blood she and her brother have got.'

'Blimey, Neville,' said Ron, 'there's a time and a place for getting a smart mouth.'

'You didn't hear her,' said Neville. 'You wouldn't have stood it either. Harri would have cursed them, after giving them a piece of her mind. The thing is, it helps when people stand up to them, it gives everyone hope. I used to notice that when you did it, Harri. We were actually having bit of a joke the other day of what you would have done in those situations.'

'But they've used you as a knife sharpener,' said Ron, wincing slightly as they passed a lamp and Neville's injuries were thrown into even greater relief.

'Doesn't matter. They don't want to spill too much pure blood, so they'll torture us a bit if we're mouthy but they won't actually kill us.'

'Dean told us that the DA had started up again.' Harri said conversationally.

'Yeah, we sneak out at night and put graffiti on the walls: Dumbledore's Army, Still Recruiting, stuff like that. Severus hates it. And thanks to Draco, we are able to move against the Inquisitorial Squad, which they brought in...'

'He's still in the DA?' said a shocked Ron.

'At first he wasn't, but he knew what we were doing and somehow knew that I was the leader.' explained Neville. 'He use to pass me information secretly in the corridors and whatnot. Anyway, one day I met with him as he was warning me about how the Carrows know that I was the leader and that they were going to do anything to get me out of the picture, when I asked him why he was helping us. It was then he explained everything saying how he never wanted to betray any of us, especially you Harri, but he had no choice. He didn't want to be the reason his parents were murdered.'

They turned a corner and there ahead of them was the end of the passage. Another short flight of steps led to a door just like the one hidden behind Ariana's portrait. Neville pushed it open and climbed through, but motioned for Harri, Ron and Hermione to stay hidden. Harri knew immediately what he was doing.

'Hey, listen up you lot!' said Neville. 'I brought you a surprise.'

'Not more of Aberforth's cooking, I hope.' Harri heard Seamus say. 'I'd be surprised if we can digest it.'

'Oh, come on, Seamus. Uncle Aberforth's cooking isn't _that_ bad.' laughed Harri, walking into the light.

'HARRI!'

Harri lightly jumped down from the portrait and began hugging her old friends, while Ron and Hermione did the same.

'Where are we?' Harri asked when she finally got the chance to look around at the hammock-filled room.

'Room of Requirement, of course!' said Neville. 'Surpassed itself, hasn't it? The Carrows were chasing me, and I knew I had just one chance for a hideout: I managed to get through the door and this is what I found! Well, it wasn't exactly like this when I arrived, it was a load smaller, there was only one hammock, but it's expanded as more and more of the D.A. have arrived.'

'And the Carrows and Uncle Severus can't get in?' asked Harri, looking around for the door.

'No,' said Seamus. 'It's a proper hideout, as long as one of us stays in here, they can't get at us, the door won't open. It's all down to Neville. He really gets this room. You've got to ask it for exactly what you need—like, "I don't want any Carrow supporters to be able to get in—and it'll do it for you! You've just got to make sure you close the loopholes! Neville's the man!'

'It's quite straightforward, really,' said Neville modestly. 'Besides, Draco helped me close all the loopholes seeing as he spent the whole of last year in here. Anyway, what's the plan, Harri?'

'There's something we need to find,' said Harri, deciding to tell them some of the truth, but not all of it. 'Something hidden here in the castle which will help us defeat You-Know-Who.'

'Okay, what is it?' Neville asked eagerly.

'We don't.' admitted Harri. 'But I think it has something to do with Ravenclaw. It would be small, easily concealed...' Harri trailed off looking around the room.

Well, there's Rowena Ravenclaw's lost diadem.' said Luna.

'Yeah, but the lost diadem,' said Michael Corner, rolling his eyes, 'is lost, Luna. That's sort of the point.'

'When was it lost?' asked Harri.

'Centuries ago, they say,' said Anthony Goldsein. 'Professor Flitwick says the diadem vanished with Ravenclaw herself. People have looked, but nobody's ever found a trace of it.'

'Sorry, but what is a diadem?' asked Ron.

'It's a kind of crown,' said Terry Boot. 'Ravenclaw's was supposed to have magical properties, enhance the wisdom of the wearer.'

'So what you are all saying is that no one alive has seen it?' questioned Harri.

The Ravenclaws nodded.

'In that case, does anyone know where the Grey Lady is?'

'I do,' said Luna.

'Right, then let's go and see -' Harri broke off as the sound of a door opening was present.

Next minute the crowd moved apart to reveal Draco. He stopped the moment he saw Harri.

'Harri.' he breathed.

Harri stared at him. He was all tense and looking at her nervously.

For a few moments there was just silence as everyone looked between the two of them, until Harri ran forward and jumped into a startled Draco's arms. He soon relaxed though and held her tightly.

'Thank you, Draco.' whispered Harri.

'For what?' asked a bewildered Draco.

'For lying to your family.' Harri said simply. 'You knew immediately who I was, yet you never told them.'

'I had betrayed you once, I didn't wish to do so again.' answered Draco. 'Forgive me?'

'Always,' smiled Harri, before reaching up and kissing him.

'What is it, Draco?' asked Neville as the couple pulled apart.

'Severus knows. He knows that Harri was spotted in Hogsmeade and has called all the students to the Great Hall.' said Draco.

Everyone quickly looked at Harri and was surprised to see her smiling.

'In that case, where's the changing room?' she asked.

'Over there,' said Lavender. 'Why?'

Harri only smiled mysteriously and walked off.

**-UNMASKED MYSTERY-**

Severus stood at the front of the hall and silently watched his students walk nervously into the hall, but he only had eyes for certain students. The students he knew were in Dumbledore's Army. If anyone had any information of his niece, it would be them.

'Many of you are surely wondering why I have summoned you at this hour.' Severus began, once he had everyone's attention. 'I have been told that earlier this evening, that Harrietta Dumbledore was sighted in Hogsmeade.' He paused and looked around, and immediately saw that the DA members indeed knew of this for they were the only ones not whispering to their partners. He risked a glance at his mother and saw that she looked petrified, with Aurora next to her whispering soothingly in her ear.

'Should anyone,' he said, silencing the mutterings of his students immediately, 'student or staff tempt to aid Harrietta, will be punished, likewise to those who know anything of her whereabouts and do not tell. Now then, if anyone in here has any knowledge of Harrietta's movements this evening, I invite them to step forward...now.'

Severus looked around at the students and staff. No one stepped forward. Slowly, his eyes moved from one side of the hall to the other, before quickly looking back as he heard the sound of high-heeled boots coming forward. He did not expect to see what he saw. Standing before him was none other than Harrietta herself, wearing Gryffindor robes and cold and loathing expression. Slowly, everyone else became aware of her presence, gasped and whispered to his or her friends.

'I have question, dear Uncle.' said Harri as she took off the Gryffindor robe. 'Was all you defensive strategies meant to keep people out or in? Cause either way I've seemed to have found a breach.'

Then, as though having been given some sort of signal, the Great Hall's door opened and in walked members of the Order of the Phoenix, Ron, Hermione, Neville, other DA members who had left the school and many more familiar faces, as Harri stuffed her robe in her bag.

Severus glanced at the group of new comers, before looking back at Harri, where he slowly took in her ripped black jeans, green, halter neck singlet, and denim jacket. He could tell that she had grown since the last time he had seen her. He soon became aware that as he had been examining her, she had been looking him up and down coldly.

'How _dare_ you stand where he stood?' growled Harri, tears slowly forming in her eyes. 'Tell them how it happened that night!' she then yelled. 'Tell them, how you looked him in the eye, a man who trusted you, and killed him! Tell them how you murdered your own father who would have done anything for you! Tell them how you betrayed us!'

Severus slowly drew his wand, making Harri's eyes widen, before Minerva, who had hurried forward to protect her, blocked her view. Severus blinked at his mother, before quickly defending himself as his mother sent spell after spell at him and in the end, he fled leaving the unconscious Carrows behind.

* * *

><p><strong>Facebook page:<strong> link on profile  
><strong>Azaelia Silmarwen facebook page:<strong> link on profile  
><strong>Written: <strong>3 January 2012

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT CLAIM OWNERSHIP OVER THE ORIGINAL COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL IN THIS STORY. THIS IS A NON-PROFIT FANDUB CREATED BY FANS, FOR FANS. NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT INTENDED. FAIR USE ONLY.**


	7. The Battle at Hogwarts

**CHAPTER SEVEN: THE BATTLE AT HOGWARTS**

After Severus' flight, to no doubt his brother, preparations began immediately to defend the castle and protect its students.

' - evacuation will be overseen by Mr Filch and Madam Pomfrey. Prefects, when I give the word, you will organise your House and take your charges, in an orderly fashion, to the evacuation point.'

'And what if we want to stay and fight?' asked Ernie.

There was a smattering of applause.

'If you are of age, you may stay,' said Minerva.

'What about our things?' called a girl at the Ravenclaw table. 'Our trunks, our owls?'

'We have no time to collect possessions,' said Minerva. 'The important thing is to get you out of here safely. We have already started placing protection around the castle, but it is unlikely to hold for very long unless we reinforce it. I must ask you, therefore, to move quickly and calmly, and do as your prefects - '

But her final words were drowned as a different voice echoed throughout the Hall. It was high, cold, and clean. There was no telling from where it came; it seemed to issue from the walls themselves. Like the monster it had once commanded, it might have lain dormant there for centuries.

'I know you are preparing to fight.' There were screams amongst the students, some of whom clutched each other, looking around in terror for the source of the sound. 'Your efforts are futile. You cannot fight me. I do not want to kill you. I have great respect for the teachers of Hogwarts. I do not want to spill magical blood. All I want is my niece. Give me Harrietta Dumbledore,' said Voldemort's voice, 'and none shall be harmed. Give me Harrietta, and I shall leave the school untouched. Give me Harrietta, and you shall be rewarded. You have until midnight.'

The silence swallowed them all again. Every head turned, and looked at Harri. Then a figure step forward from where the Slytherin's were standing and Harri recognised Pansy Parkinson as she raised a shaking arm and screamed, 'What are you waiting for? Someone grab her! Draco, grab her!'

Sighing, Draco walked over to Harri, before grabbing her arm and putting her behind him and raising his wand.

'You want to grab her, you'll have to go through me first.' he said calmly, speaking mostly to the Slytherins.

'And me.' said the DA and a few other students.

'Thank you, Miss Parkinson,' said Minerva in a clipped voice. 'You will leave the Hall first with Mr Filch. If the rest of your House could follow.'

Harri watched as Slytherin house stalked out of the room, followed by the younger years of Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and Gryffindor.

Once the younger years were gone, Kingsley stepped forward to address those that were going to remain and fight.

'We've only got half an hour until midnight, so we need to act fast! A battle plan has been agreed between the teachers of Hogwarts and the Order of the Phoenix. Professors Flitwick, Sprout, and McGonagall are going to take groups of fighters up to the three highest towers - Ravenclaw, Astronomy, and Gryffindor - where they'll have a good overview, excellent positions from which to work spells. Meanwhile Remus -' he indicated to Remus ' - Arthur - ' he pointed toward Mr Weasley ' - and I will take groups into the grounds. We'll need somebody to organise defence of the entrances of the passageways into the school - '

'Sounds like a job for us,' called Fred, indicating himself and George, and Kingsley nodded his approval.

'All right, leaders up here and we'll divide up the troops!'

'Malcolm? Robert? What are you doing here?' asked Minerva, catching sight of her brothers.

'Mum called us.' shrugged Malcolm as he embraced his sister. 'We - is that little Harrietta?' he added, catching sight of Harri, talking to Sirius and Moody.'

'What? Yes. That is she. She is now a strong independent woman.' said Minerva as she watched Harri run from the hall, dragging Draco along with her, followed by Ron, Hermione and Luna.

**-UNMASKED MYSTERY-**

Luna led Harri, Draco, Hermione and Ron through the castle and to an abandoned part of the castle.

'The Grey Lady is down there.' said Luna, stopping on top of a flight of stairs.

'Aren't you coming?' Harri asked her.

'No, I think it would be best if you talk to her alone.' answered Luna.

'We'll wait for you here.' said Draco, while Ron and Hermione nodded.

'Okay, see you in a bit.' said Harri, walking down the steps and into an empty corridor.

Harri walked quietly along, looking for the ghost of Ravenclaw Tower. She soon found her.

'Excuse me, Grey Lady?' Harri said, approaching her cautiously.

'Yes?'

'Please: I need some help. I need to know anything you can tell me about the lost diadem.'

A cold smile curved her lips.

'I am afraid,' she said, turning to leave, 'that I cannot help you.'

'I know that you are Rowena's daughter, Helena Ravenclaw.' Harri said quietly.

Helena stopped and looked back at Harri.

'I need your help to find it so I can destroy it.' said Harri, looking the ghost straight in the eye. 'I know you know what happened to it.'

'I stole the diadem from my mother.' Helena admitted after a moment of silence in a quiet voice. 'I sought to make myself cleverer, more important than my mother. I ran away with it. My mother, they say, never admitted that the diadem was gone, but pretended that she had it still. She concealed her loss, my dreadful betrayal, even from the other founders of Hogwarts. Then my mother fell ill-fatally ill. In spite of my perfidy, she was desperate to see me one more time. She sent a man who had long loved me, though I spurned his advances, to find me. She knew that he would not rest until he had done so. He tracked me to the forest where I was hiding. When I refused to return with him, he became violent. The Baron was always a hot-tempered man. Furious at my refusal, jealous of my freedom, he stabbed me.'

'The Baron? You mean - ?'

'The Bloody Baron, yes,' said Helena. 'When he saw what he had done, he was overcome with remorse. He took the weapon that had claimed my life, and used it to kill himself. All these centuries later, he wears his chains as an act of penitence...as he should,' she added bitterly.

'And...and the diadem?'

'It remained where I had hidden it when I heard the Baron blundering through the forest toward me. Concealed inside a hollow tree in a forest in Albania. A lonely place I thought was far beyond my mother's reach.'

'Albania,' repeated Harri. Sense was emerging miraculously from confusion, and now she understood why she was telling her what she had denied Albus and Flitwick. 'You've already told someone this story, haven't you? You told my Uncle Voldemort?'

She closed her eyes and nodded.

'I had...no idea... He was...flattering. He seemed to...to understand...to sympathise...'

'Do you know where it is now?' Harri asked suspiciously. 'You know it's no longer in Albania, don't you?'

Helena didn't answer straight away. Instead, she slowly circled Harri, looking her up and down.

'Strange. You remind me of him a bit.' she said finally. 'It's here in the castle, where everything is hidden. If you need to ask, you'll never know. If you know, you need only ask.'

'The Room of Requirements.' breathed Harri.

Helena nodded. She had seen Voldemort hide it in there years ago.

'Thank you. Thank you so much!' said Harri, before running back to her friends.

When Harri arrived back at the top of the stairs where she had left her friends, she saw that Luna had left and Draco, Ron and Hermione were looking at _Hogwarts: A History_.

'I know where it is!' Harri yelled excitedly. 'It's -'

' - in the Room of Requirements.' concluded Ron.

'Yes. How do you know that?' asked Harri.

'I remembered that there was a brief mention on the diadem in _Hogwarts: A History_ and when I opened up to the page it was on, it shows a sketch of what the diadem looks like.' explained Hermione.

'And while I was in the Room of Requirements last year, I remembered moving a diadem that looked the exact same as the sketch.' concluded Draco. 'And I still know where it is.'

'Wicked. All right then, what are we waiting for?' said an excited Harri, before heading to the Room of Requirements with her friends, but they hadn't gotten very far when Ron stopped.

'Hang on a moment!' said Ron sharply. 'We've forgotten someone!'

'Who?' asked Hermione.

'The house-elves, they'll all be down in the kitchen, won't they?'

'You mean we ought to get them fighting?' asked a shocked Harri.

'No,' said Ron seriously, 'I mean we should tell them to get out. We can't order them to die for us - '

There was a thud as Hermione dropped her beaded bag as she flung her arms around Ron's neck and kissed him full on the mouth. Ron responded with such enthusiasm that he lifted Hermione off her feet.

Harri looked knowingly at the shocked Draco.

'Not all my visions are bad.' laughed Harri.

'I never said they were...are you two quite finished? We're in the middle of a war not a kissing booth!' said Draco when he noticed that Ron and Hermione weren't breaking apart any time soon.

Ron and Hermione broke apart, their arms still around each other. They both looked from the highly amused Harri to the slightly annoyed Draco.

'You can kiss each other to your heart's content once the war is over.' laughed Harri, before leading the way to the Room of Requirements.

The diadem was easy enough to find, for while others would probably get lost in the maze of hidden belongings, Draco walked without hesitation before stopping in front of the Vanishing Cabinet. He then found the diadem to its left and Harri then stabbed it with the sword of Gryffindor, before putting it and the diadem into her bag.

'That leaves only the snake now,' muttered Ron, once they were outside the Room of Requirements, as the walls trembled around them and the sounds of screaming could be heard on the floors below. 'You need to find out where Voldemort is, because he'll have the snake with him, won't he? Do it, Harri - look inside him!'

'But I've never purposely done it.' argued Harri.

'Harri, you are one of the brightest witches I have ever known. If anyone can do it, you can.' Draco said confidently.

Harri nodded, before relaxing her mind and reaching out for her uncle's. It wasn't as hard as she thought it would be and moments later -after she had seen all that she needed to see -, she was staring into Draco's anxious face.

'He's in the boathouse with your father.' Harri told Draco.

'My father, is he...?' Draco trailed off, looking extremely worried.

'He's still alive. He was trying to convince Voldemort to end the battle now so he can go in and find you. He is terrible worried about you.' Harri told her boyfriend gently. 'Except Voldemort sent him off to find Uncle Severus.'

'Is the snake with him?' asked Ron.

'Oh yes. He won't let Nagini out of his sight until he knows she will be safe, and he knows that she won't be safe as long as I'm around.' answered Harri. 'She will be our most difficult Horcrux yet.'

'We knew that from the beginning.' said Hermione. 'Let's go and end this war before anymore lives have been lost.'

The other three nodded their agreement, before running through the castle, throwing jinxes and curses at Death Eaters as they went. They ran out to the Entrance courtyard where they then saw one Voldemort's giant allies, throwing Order, staff and DA members around like ants. It was then that Harri's Valkyrie instincts came into play. She saw the giant as the biggest threat, so she ran full speed at it, ignoring her friends' startled cries, and climbed up its back. When she eventually made it to the giant's shoulders, she took a deep breath, before doing the unthinkable. She stabbed her dagger in one of its eyes, making it howl with pain, before doing the same to its other eye. She then took out the sword of Gryffindor and stabbed it straight throw the creature's throat, killing it almost instantly. As it fell to the ground, Harri jumped off and ran towards the boathouse as though nothing had happened, with Ron, Hermione and Draco hurrying after her, once they had gotten over their shock.

Once at the boathouse, the four of them quietly looked through the windows and they see Voldemort and Severus standing in their talking.

'...I have a problem, Severus,' said Voldemort softly.

'Brother?' said Severus.

Voldemort raised the Elder Wand, holding it as delicately and precisely as a conductor's baton.

'Why doesn't it work for me, Severus?'

'I - I do not understand. You have performed extraordinary magic with that wand.' said a confused Severus.

'No,' said Voldemort. 'I have performed my usual magic. I am extraordinary, but this wand...no. It has not revealed the wonders it has promised. I feel no difference between this wand and the one I procured from Ollivander all those years ago.'

Severus remained silent, clearly not understanding where his brother was going.

'I have thought long and hard, Severus...wondering, wondering, why the Elder Wand refuses to be what it ought to be, refuses to perform as legend says it must perform for its rightful owner...and I think I have the answer.'

Still Severus did not speak.

'Perhaps you already know it? You are a clever man, after all, Severus.' Voldemort said, walking over to his younger brother and taking Severus face in his hands as he took in every detail of his face. 'You have been good and faithful to me Sev, and I regret what must happen.'

'Brother?'

'The Elder Wand cannot serve me properly, Severus, because I am not its true master. The Elder Wand belongs to the wizard who killed its last owner. You killed Father. While you live, Severus, the Elder Wand cannot truly be mine.'

'You can't mean...' said a horrified Severus, slowly backing away from Voldemort.

'It cannot be any other way,' said Voldemort sadly. 'I must master the wand, Severus. Master the wand, and I master Harrietta at last.'

Then, as though through a hidden signal, Nagini lunged at Severus, sinking her poisonous fangs into his flesh. Draco had to cover Harri's mouth with his hand as she let out a small scream. Thankfully, Voldemort didn't hear it over his brother's screams of pain.

A horrified and upset Harri watched as her father's twin' collapsed to the ground.

'I regret it,' said Voldemort sadly, as he turned away from the figure on the floor and left the building.

The moment Voldemort and Nagini were gone, Harri rushed inside to her uncle's side. True she hated him for what he did, but she also loved him dearly.

'Uncle Sev.' Harri cried, gently rolling her uncle over onto his back.

Severus eyes widened when he saw her, before whispering, 'Take...it...Take...it...'

At first Harri was confused, but then she saw something blue coming out of his eye, which she immediately knew wasn't a tear, but memories. Frantically, Harri pulled an empty bottle out of her bag and held it so the memories fell into it. She then handed it to Hermione, before ripping off the Pendant of Alvara and holding it in Severus' dying hands.

'Come on, work. Please, you have to work!' cried Harri. 'PLEASE!' she yelled as Severus' eyes began to close. 'NO! You can't go! You can't! Think of Grandmother! Of Aurora! We need you! I need you! Please, Uncle Sev!'

His eyes didn't open, nor did he make any sign of hearing her.

'NO! Why isn't it working?' demanded Harri, furiously wiping tears out of her eyes.

'Maybe the venom moved quickly. I'm sorry, Harri.' Hermione said gently.

'That's not possible! Ron's dad got bitten and didn't die!'

Before anyone could answer her, a high, cold voice echoed around Hogwarts.

'You have fought,' said the high, cold voice, 'valiantly. Lord Voldemort knows how to value bravery. Yet you have sustained heavy losses. If you continue to resist me, you will all die, one by one. I do not wish this to happen. Every drop of magical blood spilled is a loss and a waste. Lord Voldemort is merciful. I command my forces to retreat immediately. You have one hour. Dispose of your dead with dignity. Treat your injured. I speak now, Harrietta, directly to you. You have permitted your friends to die for you rather than face me yourself. I shall wait for one hour in the Forbidden Forest. If, at the end of that hour, you have not come to me, have not given yourself up, then battle recommences. This time, I shall enter the fray myself, Harrietta, and I shall find you, and I shall punish every last man, woman, and child who has tried to conceal you from me. One hour.'

'I need to get to Grandfather's office.' said Harri, a few minutes after Voldemort's speech. 'I need to view the memories that Uncle Sev left me, but -'

'It's all right, Harri. I'll remain with him.' Draco said gently, understanding how she needed to keep fighting, but she didn't want her uncle to be alone.

'Thank you,' cried Harri, before going back up to the castle with Ron and Hermione.

The castle was unnaturally silent. There were no flashes of light now, no bangs or screams or shouts. The flagstones of the deserted entrance hall were stained with blood. Emeralds were still scattered all over the floor, along with pieces of marble and splintered wood. Part of the banisters had been blown away.

'Where is everyone?' whispered Hermione.

Ron led the way to the Great Hall. Harri stopped in the doorway. The room was crowded. The survivors stood in groups, their arms around each other's necks. The injured were being treated upon the raised platform by Madam Pomfrey and a group of helpers. Firenze was amongst the injured; his flank poured blood and he shook where he lay, unable to stand. The dead lay in a row in the middle of the Hall. Harri felt her heart break as she recognised a number of the dead, but what broke her heart most was when she saw Remus and Tonks, pale and still and peaceful looking, apparently asleep beneath the dark, enchanted ceiling. The Great Hall seemed to fly away, become smaller, shrink, as Harri reeled backward from the doorway. She could not draw breath and she could not bear to look at any of the other bodies, to see who else had died for her. What if one of those other bodies was her grandmother's? Her great-grandmother's? Or one of her great uncle's? What if it was Aurora or one of her other friends, such as Neville, Luna, Fred or George? No, this had to end now!

Harri hurried to the headmaster's office, and once inside, she headed over to the stone Pensieve and poured Severus' memories into the wide basin with its runic markings around the edge. Taking a deep breath, Harri plunged into her uncle's thoughts, hoping that it was better than were she currently was.

Harri stood on a hilltop, forlorn and cold in the darkness, the wind whistling through the branches of a few leafless trees. Severus, roughly twenty years old, maybe older, was turning on the spot, his wand gripped tightly in his hand, waiting for something or for someone...His fear infected Harri too, even though she knew that she could not be harmed, and she looked over her shoulder, wondering what it was that Severus was waiting for. Then a blinding, jagged jet of white light flew through the air and both Harri and Severus whipped around to see Albus standing there.

'Well, Severus? What message does your brother have for me?' Albus asked, looking sadly over at his youngest son.

'No - no message - I'm here on my own account, Father.' Severus was shaking badly, though Harri noted that it wasn't fear of his father. It was fear of something else. 'That - that prophecy...the prediction...Trelawney...'

'Ah, yes,' said Albus. 'How much did you relay to your brother?'

'Everything - everything I heard!' said Severus. 'That is why - it is for that reason - he thinks it means Lily!'

'The prophecy did not refer to a woman,' said Albus, frowning slightly. 'It spoke of a child born at the end of July -'

'You know what I mean! He thinks it means her child, he is going to hunt her down - kill them all - he will kill both Lily and - and James, before destroying the child! I have begged him to spare them, but I know I he will not! Please Father! Hide them! Hide them where they will be safe!' Severus gasped, almost in tears, as he bowed his head. 'You were right. Tom is not who I thought he was, and I'm sorry! Sorry I ran away, but please help my brother!'

Albus stood there for a moment, before striding forward and embracing his son tightly.

'Oh, my Severus.' whispered Albus, looking as though he was about to cry.

The hilltop faded, and Harri stood in Albus office, and something was making a terrible sound, like a wounded animal.

Minerva was standing in the background, crying into her mother's shoulder, while her two brothers also stood there trying to comfort her. Aberforth was sitting by a window, gazing sadly across Hogwarts' grounds, while Severus was slumped forward in a chair and Albus was sitting on the arm next to him, looking highly upset. After a moment or two, Severus raised his face, and he looked like a man who had lived a hundred years of misery since leaving the wild hilltop.

'I thought...you were going...to keep them...safe...' he whispered as tears flowed down his face.

'James and Lily put their faith in the wrong person,' said Albus gently as he stroked his son's hair soothingly. 'Rather like you, Severus. Weren't you hoping that Tom would spare them?'

Severus did not answer.

'Their daughter survives,' said Albus.

Severus looked quickly at his father.

'Wh-what?'

'Their beautiful daughter, Harrietta, lives. She has her mother's eyes, precisely her eyes. And I'm sure that when Harri is older, she will have the beauty of her mother, but look like James.' Albus said quietly, before showing Severus a picture of baby Harri, though she was currently male in the photo.

'What -?'

'Oh, Harri is a Valkyrie, and while Valkyries and strong, independent, and powerful creatures, and are able to look after themselves, Harri will still need protection.'

'She does not need protection. Both my brothers are now gone -'

'But Tom will return, and Harri will be in terrible danger when he does.'

There was a long pause.

'Then I will doing everything in my power to protect her.' vowed Severus, at last, before laughing slightly as baby Harri changed back into a girl and pulled a funny face.

The office dissolved but re-formed instantly. Severus was pacing up and down in front of Albus.

'I hate this. When can we tell Harri the truth?' Severus demanded. 'I hate having to act so coldly towards her. Today in potions, you should have seen the look she gave me!'

'When she is really, she shall know.' said Albus, without raising his eyes from a copy of Transfiguration Today. 'Keep an eye on Quirrell, won't you?'

Severus gave his father a look, which Albus ignored.

A whirl of colour, and now everything darkened, and Severus and Albus stood a little apart in the entrance hall, while the last stragglers from the Yule Ball passed them on their way to bed.

'Well?' murmured Albus.

'Karkaroff's Mark is becoming darker too. He is panicking, he fears retribution; you know how much help he gave the Ministry after the Tom fell.' Severus looked sideways at his father's crooked-nosed profile. 'Karkaroff intends to flee if the Mark burns.'

'Does he?' said Albus softly, as Fleur Delacour and Roger Davies came giggling in from the grounds. 'And are you tempted to join him?' he asked innocently, while looking at Severus intently out the corner of his eye.

'No,' said Severus, his black eyes on Fleur's and Roger's retreating figures. 'I am not such a coward.'

'No,' agreed Albus. 'You are a far braver man than Igor Karkaroff. You know, I sometimes think we Sort too soon...'

He walked away, leaving Severus looking confused.

And now Harry stood in the headmaster's office yet again. It was nighttime, and Albus sagged sideways in the throne like chair behind the desk, apparently semiconscious. His right hand dangled over the side, blackened and burned. Severus was muttering incantations, pointing his wand at the wrist of the hand, while with his left hand he tipped a goblet full of thick golden potion down Albus' throat. After a moment or two, Albus' eyelids fluttered and opened.

'You fool!' Severus said, scolding his father. 'Why did you put on that ring? It carries a curse, surely you realised that. Why even touch it?'

Marvolo Gaunt's ring lay on the desk before Albus. It was cracked; the sword of Gryffindor lay beside it. Albus grimaced.

'I...was a fool. Sorely tempted...'

'Tempted by what?' demanded a furious Severus. When Albus did not answer, he continued, 'It is a miracle you managed to return here! That ring carried a curse of extraordinary power, to contain it is all we can hope for; I have trapped the curse in one hand for the time being -'

Albus raised his blackened, useless hand, and examined it with the expression of one being shown an interesting curio.

'You have done very well, Severus. How long do you think I have?'

Albus' tone was conversational which made Severus flinch slightly.

'I cannot tell. Maybe a year. There is no halting such a spell forever. It will spread eventually; it is the sort of curse that strengthens over time.'

Albus smiled. The news that he had less than a year to live seemed a matter of little or no concern to him.

'I am fortunate, extremely fortunate, that I have you, Severus.'

'If you had only summoned me a little earlier, I might have been able to do more, buy you more time!' said Severus furiously. He looked down at the broken ring and the sword. 'Did you think that breaking the ring would break the curse?'

'Something like that...I was delirious, no doubt...' said Albus.

'Do you have any idea of the impact this will have on our family, especially on Harri?' Severus demanded.

'Which is why, I don't plan on telling them.'

'What? You can't be serious?' yelled Severus. 'They have a right to know, and Harri, Harri is a smart girl. She will know that we are hiding something from her and won't rest 'til she knows what it is!'

'I highly doubt it, Severus.' said Albus. 'I know that Tom has ordered young Draco to murder me, which means that the rest of the family will never have to find out that I was dying.'

'What? You're going to let Draco try and kill you?' said a shocked Severus. 'Father - that is insane! Draco doesn't have a bad bone in his entire body! He'd never be able to kill someone, let alone you! You are his girlfriend's grandfather!'

'I know, but it is not Draco you will kill me.' Albus said calmly. 'You must kill me.'

There was a long silence, broken only by an odd clicking noise. Fawkes the phoenix was gnawing a bit of cuttlebone.

'Please tell me I just imagined you saying that.' said Severus, looking as though he was going to pass out as he closed his eyes, hardly daring to believe what he was hearing.

'I ask this one great favour of you, Severus, because death is coming for me as surely as the Chudley Cannons will finish bottom of this year's league. I confess I should prefer a quick, painless exit to the protracted and messy affair it will be if, for instance, Greyback is involved—I hear Voldemort has recruited him? Or dear Bellatrix, who likes to play with her food before she eats it.'

Severus' eyes snapped open before shaking his head and saying, 'I can't believe I'm agreeing to grant you that favour.'

'Thank you, Severus.'

They were in Albus' office, the windows dark, and Fawkes sat silent as Severus sat quite still, as Albus walked around him, talking.

'Harri must not know, not until the last moment, not until it is necessary, otherwise how could she have the strength to do what must be done?'

'But what must she do?'

'That is between Harri and me. Now listen closely, Severus. There will come a time—after my death—do not argue, do not interrupt! There will come a time when Lord Voldemort will seem to fear for the life of his snake.'

'For Nagini?' Severus looked astonished.

'Precisely. If there comes a time when Lord Voldemort stops sending that snake forth to do his bidding, but keeps it safe beside him under magical protection, then, I think, it will be safe to tell Harri.'

'Tell her what? Father, you are talking in riddles.'

Albus took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

'Tell her that on the night Lord Voldemort tried to kill her, when Lily cast her own life between them as a shield, the Killing Curse rebounded upon Lord Voldemort, and a fragment of Voldemort's soul was blasted apart from the whole, and latched itself onto the only living soul left in that collapsed building. Part of Lord Voldemort lives inside Harri, and it is that which gives her a connection with Lord Voldemort's mind that she has never understood. And while that fragment of soul, unmissed by Voldemort, remains attached to and protected by Harri, Lord Voldemort cannot die.'

Harri seemed to be watching the two men from one end of a long tunnel. They were so far away from her, their voices echoing strangely in her ears.

'So she - she must die?' said a horrified Severus.

'And Voldemort himself must do it, Severus. That is essential.'

Severus sat there horrified.

'No. There must be another way.' said a desperate Severus.

'There is none, I'm afraid.' Albus said sadly.

Severus bowed his head and Harri watched as tears began to form in his uncle's eyes.

'So I have to tell the girl that is as good as my daughter that she has to die?' said Severus, great pain evident in his voice.

Albus only nodded.

And the scene shifted. Now Severus stood again in the headmaster's study as Phineas Nigellus came hurrying into his portrait.

'Headmaster! They are camping in a forest close to Palace Acacia! Your niece mentioned the place as the Granger girl opened her bag and I heard her!'

'Good. Very good!' cried the portrait of Albus behind the headmaster's chair. 'Now, Severus, the sword!'

'Yes Father.' muttered Severus, approaching his father's portrait, which he ended up pulling aside to reveal a hidden cavity behind it from which he took the sword of Gryffindor.

'And you still aren't going to tell me why it's so important to give Harri the sword?' said Severus as he swung a travelling cloak over his robes.

'No, I don't think so,' said Albus' portrait. 'She will know what to do with it. And Severus, be very careful, they may not take kindly to your appearance after my death.'

'As you keep reminding me,' muttered Severus as he left the office.

Harri rose up out of the Pensieve, and moments later she lay on the carpeted floor in exactly the same room; Severus might just have closed the door.

Harri didn't know how long she laid there as she let the truth roll around inside her, but eventually she stood up to face the inescapable. She stood up to face her destiny. This war was going to end that night...she would make sure of it.

* * *

><p><strong>Facebook page:<strong> link on profile  
><strong>Azaelia Silmarwen facebook page:<strong> link on profile**  
>Written: <strong>4 January 2012

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT CLAIM OWNERSHIP OVER THE ORIGINAL COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL IN THIS STORY. THIS IS A NON-PROFIT FANDUB CREATED BY FANS, FOR FANS. NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT INTENDED. FAIR USE ONLY.**


	8. Her True Destiny

**CHAPTER EIGHT: HER TRUE DESTINY**

Harri silently walked through the deserted and destroyed corridors of Hogwarts, before slipping into one of the classrooms and pulling out some parchment, ink and quill from her bag, before writing a letter to her friends and family explaining everything. Once she was down, she packed away her ink and quill, got up and walked toward the Great Hall, where she stopped and hid in the shadows watching her friends, family and everyone else who had risked their lives. She watched the Weasleys sitting together with Hermione, talking quietly, before looking over at her family where Aurora was sitting patiently as Minerva healed a nasty cut on her forehead while Rhiannon, Robert, Malcolm and Aberforth sat nearby. She then searched the hall for her godfather and found him talking to Kingsley and Moody, though he kept looking around the hall. As Harri watched him, she saw him ask Kingsley a question, which Kingsley reluctantly replied. Harri then watched as Sirius whipped around and saw how one of his best friends and cousin laid dead. He fell to his knees crying.

Harri had seen enough. She knew what she was about to do would hurt them even more, so she quietly called out to Kreacher.

'Miss Harrietta called Kreacher.' said Kreacher, bowing to her.

'Yes, Kreacher. I need you to do something for me.' Harri said, trying not to cry.

She was scared. No. She was terrified. But she stayed strong none the less.

'When you lose sight of me as I enter the grounds, please give this to Hermione.' Harri said, handing Kreacher her bag and the letter she wrote.

'Miss Harrietta,' said Kreacher as he realised something was wrong.

'Take care of Sirius for me, Kreacher.' smiled Harri before walking into the night, to meet her end, wishing that she could have seen Draco's face one last time.

**-UNMASKED MYSTERY-**

Kreacher did as Harri asked and watched her until she was out of sight, before walking into the hall and over to Hermione.

'Miss Hermione,' said Kreacher.

'Kreacher? What are you doing here?' asked Hermione, and the entire hall turned to look at the elf.

'Miss Harrietta told Kreacher to give you this.' answered Kreacher, handing her the letter and Harri's bag.

Hermione's eyes widened, before she opened the letter and read aloud:

Wow, this will be harder than I thought...but it is the only way to make you understand.

If you are reading this, then I am already or half way to the Forbidden Forest to meet my uncle, and I beg that none of you come and stop me. You probably all think that I'm sacrificing myself for you all, and that is partly true. As long as I live, Voldemort cannot be defeated. Why, you are probably all wondering. Simple. Hermione, Ron and I have been hunting down Voldemort's Horcruxes, as my grandfather did before us. In total we have destroyed five Horcruxes, however there was seven in total. Yes Ron and Hermione. Seven. As the two of you already know, the snake is a Horcrux and it is the last one you have to worry about destroying for I am off to destroy the seventh Horcrux...me. When Voldemort kills me, the Horcrux inside me will be destroyed. That is why I have to go and face him. I have one request of you all...never stop fighting for what you believe in.

To my family:

Grandmother, I know what I am doing will cause you a lot of pain and I am terribly sorry for putting this on you. I know that you will feel that you have lost us all, but that is not true. We will always be with you. Though you need to know that there is still good in Uncle Tom, I know it. Any who, what you really need to know is that Uncle Severus was never a true Death Eater. He killed Grandfather on Grandfather's orders. Everything he did he did as Grandfather had planned. I'm telling you this, cause if I don't you will never know the truth. Though it is with deep regret that I must inform you that Uncle Sev is dead. His body is currently in the boathouse with Draco. I tried to save him, but...

I know Draco is not there as you are reading this letter, but please, please tell him that I love him with all my heart and I just want him to be happy. To go on with his life even when I'm gone.

Love Harri.

**-UNMASKED MYSTERY-**

Hagrid's hut loomed out of the darkness. There were no lights, no sound of Fang scrabbling at the door, his bark booming in welcome. All those visits to Hagrid, and the gleam of the copper kettle on the fire, and rock cakes and giant grubs, and his great bearded face, and Ron vomiting slugs, and Hermione helping her save Norbert...

Harri wished she could go back to those days, where life seemed so much easier.

Harri moved on, and when she reached the edge of the forest, she stopped. A swarm of dementors was gliding amongst the trees; she could feel their chill, and she was not sure she would be able to pass safely through it. She had no strength left for a Patronus. She could no longer control her own trembling. It was not, after all, so easy to die. Every second she breathed, the smell of the grass, the cool air on her face, was so precious: To think that people had years and years, time to waste, so much time it dragged, and she was clinging to each second. At the same time she thought that she would not be able to go on, and knew that she must. The long game was ended, the Snitch had been caught, and it was time to leave the air...The Snitch. Her nerveless fingers fumbled for a moment with the pouch she kept around her neck and she pulled it out.

_I open at the close_.

Breathing fast and hard, she stared down at it. Now that she wanted time to move as slowly as possible, it seemed to have sped up, and understanding was coming so fast it seemed to have bypassed thought. This was the close. This was the moment.

She pressed the golden metal to her lips and whispered, 'I am about to die.'

The metal shell broke open. She lowered her shaking hand, raised her wand and murmured, 'Lumos.'

The black stone with its jagged crack running down the centre sat in the two halves of the Snitch. The Resurrection Stone had cracked down the vertical line representing the Elder Wand. The triangle and circle representing the Cloak and the stone were still discernible. And again Harri understood without having to think. It did not matter about bringing them back, for she was about to join them. She was not really fetching them: They were fetching her. And she knew the exact four people she need to fetch her.

Grandfather, Mum, Dad, Uncle Sev. I need you. Harri thought and she closed her eyes and turned the stone over thrice in hand.

After she had turned it three times, she hesitated for a moment, before opening her eyes. Though she had wanted all four people she had thought of, only two of them were standing in front of her. Only her mother and father had answered her call. Her parents were neither ghost nor truly flesh, but they nevertheless walked towards her, smiling the same loving smiled.

James was exactly the same height as Severus and he was in fact identical to his twin brother. Both had the same looks and both looked at her in the same way. The only difference was that he parted his hair to the opposite side to Severus. Lily, however, smile was even wider than James'. She pushed her long red hair back as she drew close to her, and her green eyes, so like her, searched her face hungrily, as though she would never be able to look at her enough.

'You've been so brave, sweet heart.' she whispered.

'Indeed. You are nearly there,' said James. 'Very close. We are...so proud of you.'

'Does it hurt?' Harri asked, not caring how childish the question sounded.

'Dying? Not at all,' said James. 'Quicker and easier than falling asleep.'

'I didn't want you to die,' said Harri.

'We know, Princess.' smiled James.

'You'll stay with me?'

'We never left you.' answered Lily.

'Stay close to me.' Harri asked, as tears began to form in her eyes, before she let the Stone fall from her hand.

Once more she walked into the Forest, grateful that the dementor chill did not overcome her as she searched for her uncle. She soon found him in a small clearing with a fire burning in the middle. Its flickering light fell over a crowd of completely silent, watchful Death Eaters.

Harri was wondering if she should just walk in and see what would happen, when one of the Death Eater's spoke.

'It has been an hour, my Lord.'

'I thought she would come.' Voldemort said quietly. 'I was, it seems...mistaken.'

'You weren't, Uncle.' Harri said as she walked forward.

'HARRI! NO!' yelled Hagrid, scaring Harri as she looked around and saw him bounded. 'WHAT YEH DOING HERE!

'What I must, Hagrid.' Harri replied quietly, before turning to face Voldemort.

For a while uncle and niece just stared at each other and then Voldemort broke the silence.

'It doesn't have to end this way, my dear.' Voldemort said almost lovingly. 'You can join us and live.'

'You know that I will never be able to, Uncle.' replied Harri. 'I will die before I betray my friends.'

'Very well.' Voldemort said sadly, looking down into one of his hands.

Following his gaze, Harri saw that he was looking at the ruby bracelet he had given her for her sixteenth birthday.

Slowly, he looked back up, aimed his wand at her, and said the two words that would end her life.

'Avada Kedavra.'

**-UNMASKED MYSTERY-**

The survivors sat nervously in the Great Hall, waiting and dreading the horrible announcement that was sure to come. The announcement telling them that Harrietta Dumbledore was no longer with them...and so it did. As dawn approached, Voldemort entered the Great Hall, followed by his Death Eaters and the survivors all saw the thing they had been dreading most...Harrietta laid dead in Hagrid's shaking arms.

'NO!' screamed Minerva, before falling to her knees, while Bellatrix laughed at Minerva's grief.

'How could you, Tom?' demanded Robert as he knelt next to his heartbroken sister.

'First James, then Severus, and now Harri,' Aberforth said disgusted.

'Whatever happened to the Tom we knew?' asked Malcolm. 'The one that actually liked spending time with his family, instead of killing them off!'

Voldemort ignored his uncles. Instead, he addressed the rest of the hall.

'You see?' said Voldemort. 'Harrietta Dumbledore is dead! From this day forth, you will put your faith in me...'

'And why should we do a thing like that?' demanded Neville.

'And who are you?' asked Voldemort, eyes narrowing dangerously at Neville. Clearly he did not appreciate the rude interruption.

'It is Neville Longbottom, my Lord! The boy who has been giving the Carrows so much trouble! The son of the Aurors, remember?'

'Ah, yes, I remember,' said Voldemort, looking mildly interested in Neville. 'But you are a pureblood, aren't you, my brave boy?' Voldemort asked Neville, who stood facing him, his empty hands curled into fists.

'So what if I am?' said Neville loudly.

'You show spirit and bravery, and you come of noble stock. You will make a very valuable Death Eater. We need your kind, Neville Longbottom.'

'I'll join you when hell freezes over,' said Neville. 'I wish to follow Harri's wish for us to fight for what we believe in.'

'Harrietta asked you to continue fighting?' repeated Voldemort, looking over at Harri who Hagrid had gently placed on a nearby table. She looked so peaceful and untroubled. 'How uncharacteristic of her and I can see by the looks in your eyes that all of you are willing to fight once more.'

'You got that right.' Neville said coldly, before catching the sword of Gryffindor Hermione had just thrown to him and cutting off Nagini's head who had slowly been slithering over to him, fangs at the ready.

Voldemort let out a scream of rage, but at the same time, the house-elves of Hogwarts appeared in the Great Hall, screaming and waving carving knives and cleavers, and at their head, the locket of Regulus Black bouncing on his chest, was Kreacher, his bullfrog's voice audible even above this din: 'Fight! Fight! Fight for my Miss Harrietta, defender of the house-elves! Fight the Dark Lord, in the name of brave Regulus! Fight!'

Voldemort and his Death Eaters blinked at the house-elves before drawing their wands and fighting them off as the elves hacked and stabbed their ankles and shins, while also fighting of Hogwarts' staff, students, the Order of the Phoenix and the DA.

During the battle, George, Fred and Lee slammed Yaxley to the floor, Dolohov fell with a scream at Flitwick's hands, Walden Macnair was thrown across the room by Hagrid, hit the stone wall opposite, and slide unconscious to the ground. Ron and Neville brought down Fenrir Greyback, Aberforth Stunned Rookwood, Arthur and Percy floored Thicknesse, and Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy ran through the crowd, not even attempting to fight, screaming for their son.

In the end, only eight people were duelling. Voldemort was duelling Minerva, Robert, and Malcolm all at once, and there was cold hatred in his face as they wove and ducked around him, unable to finish him - Bellatrix was still fighting too, fifty yards away from Voldemort, and like her master she duelled three at once: Hermione, Ginny, and Luna, all battling their hardest, but Bellatrix was equal to them. However, when Aurora got involved, Bellatrix was out matched and fell to the ground unmoving.

Voldemort screamed and Minerva, Robert and Malcolm were blasted backward, flailing and writhing through the air, as Voldemort's fury at the fall of his last, best lieutenant exploded with the force of a bomb. Voldemort raised his wand and directed it at Aurora.

'Protego!' yelled a familiar voice.

Voldemort froze. He recognised that voice, but how was it possible? Narcissa Malfoy had said that she was dead! But sure enough, standing on the table where they had left her, was Harrietta looking as lively as ever.

At first there was silence as everyone just stared at Harri before the hall erupted with cheers, though they fell silent as Harri jumped into the ring of spectators directly in front of Voldemort.

'I don't want anyone else to try to help.' Harri said loudly. 'It's got to be like this. It's got to be me.'

Voldemort hissed.

'Harrietta doesn't mean that,' he said, his red eyes wide. 'That isn't how he works, is it? Who are you going to use as a shield today, Harrietta?'

'Nobody,' Harri said simply. 'There are no more Horcruxes and you won't be killing anyone else tonight,' said Harri as they circled, and stared into each other's eyes, green into red. 'You will never kill anyone ever again, Uncle Tom. On this night, I will free you from your master!'

'His what?' asked a quiet voice from the entrance.

Everyone turned around and saw a pale Severus, leaning against Draco with the Pendant of Alvara around his neck glowing lightly. The pendant did heal him!

'Sev.' breathed Voldemort. He stood there staring at his brother, before his eyes flashed red and he turned to look at Harri once more. 'I don't know what you are talking about. I have no master.'

'You're lying.' Harri said calmly. 'I saw. I saw you visiting your master Grindelwald where you were discussing me amongst other things when I was captured at the Malfoys. He did something to you when you visited Diagon Alley before your sixth year. His attack wasn't random...it was planned. You were his target. He had a feeling that Grandfather would beat him so he made you his servant, knowing that he could use you to get back at Grandfather and take over the world once more.'

Voldemort said nothing, but his eyes flashed from red to hazel and back again.

'That's why you could never truly kill me. Apart of you never stopped fighting Grindelwald.' Harri said, slowly walking forward.

'You're wrong!' said Voldemort, though he did not attempt to attack her.

'No. I am not. And you know it.' Harri said, before running forward and ripping his amulet off him.

Voldemort let out a cry of pain as the amulet was ripped from underneath his skin. Severus, seeing his brother start to fall unconscious, hurried forward, regardless of how weak he was, caught Voldemort before he hit the ground. Meanwhile, Harri threw the amulet into a nearby fireplace flicked her wand at it, which caused the amulet to let out a high pitched scream and it was destroyed. Once destroyed, Harri looked around to see Minerva hugging Severus and looking down at her eldest son as Voldemort's body began to change, and before they knew it, Tom Dumbledore was back to his original self.

Harri quickly hurried over and accepted her pendant off Severus, which she used to heal Tom's neck wound where she had ripped the amulet chain.

'Don't worry, Uncle Tom.' Harri whispered. 'I'll make sure that you'll never have to do Grindelwald's bidding ever again.' After all, that was her destiny. Her destiny was to mead her broken family and protect them.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: One more chapter to go.**

**Facebook page: **link on profile  
><strong>Azaelia Silmarwen facebook page:<strong> link on profile  
><strong>Written:<strong> 5 January 2012

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT CLAIM OWNERSHIP OVER THE ORIGINAL COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL IN THIS STORY. THIS IS A NON-PROFIT FANDUB CREATED BY FANS, FOR FANS. NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT INTENDED. FAIR USE ONLY.**


	9. Epilogue: TwentyOne Years Later

**CHAPTER NINE: EPILOGUE: TWENTY-ONE YEARS LATER **

Venus was so excited. She could barely contain her joy as she hopped out of a boat, along with her two cousins - though they weren't her first cousins - Adrian and Hayden, and he friend Hugo Weasley, they had just used to cross the lake with Hagrid and the other Hogwarts first years. Venus had been impatiently waiting to be accepted into Hogwarts since her mother became the Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, but at long last that day had come. While everyone else, besides Venus, Adrian and Hayden, stood around gaping at how magnificent Hogwarts was (the cousins had already been to Hogwarts numerous times), Venus stood there impatiently, as Hagrid checked the boats.

'All right, everyone follow me!' called Hagrid, leading the up a rocky passageway which soon became smooth, damp grass right in the shadow of the castle.

He led them up a flight of stone steps, on which the first years soon crowded around a huge, oak door. Hagrid quickly made sure that they were all there, before knocking three times on the door, which opened immediately, by a tall, grey-haired witch in emerald-robes, which came across as someone you did not want to cross.

'Firs' years, Professor McGonagall.' said Hagrid.

'Thank you, Hagrid.' smiled Minerva, before leading the first years into a small empty chamber near the Great Hall, where she addressed them.

'Welcome to Hogwarts,' said Minerva. 'The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory, and spend free time in your house common room. The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rule breaking -' Minerva looked knowingly down at Venus, Hayden and Adrian. Venus smiled innocently at her, while Hayden and Adrian, grinned at each other from behind Venus. ' - will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup, a great honour. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours. The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting. I shall return when we are ready for you,' said Minerva. 'Please wait quietly.'

The moment Minerva left the chamber, the other first years started talking nervously amongst themselves.

'I wonder how they sort us.'

'According to my brother, you have to do some sort of test.'

'Test? But I know nothing of the Wizarding World!'

Next minute, Minerva had re-entered the chamber and the first years quickly fell quiet under her stern gaze. Adrian, Hayden and Venus stood their trying not to laugh.

'Please form two straight lines,' Minerva told the first years once she had their undivided attention, 'and follow me.'

Venus and Adrian led the lines, followed by Hayden and Hugo, then the rest of the first years. Together they followed Minerva out of the chamber, back across the hall, and through a pair of double doors into the Great Hall. Most of the first years had never even imagined such a strange and splendid place. It was lit by thousands and thousands of candles that were floating in midair over four long tables, where the rest of the students were sitting. These tables were laid with glittering golden plates and goblets. At the top of the hall was another long table where the teachers were sitting. As Minerva led them passed all the waiting students, Venus looked for her older brother, but she couldn't see him. Maybe he was being mean and hiding from her.

Once they had gotten passed all the students, Minerva told them to wait in a group at the bottom of the stairs. At the top of the stairs, in front of the teachers, was a four-legged stool patched, frayed and dirty pointed wizarding hat. Venus recognised it immediately as the Sorting Hat.

For a few seconds, there was complete silence, in which the hall stood staring at the hat, though the first years did so nervously. Then the hat twitched. A rip near the brim opened wide like a mouth and the hat began to sing, telling them that he was the Sorting Hat and how they might belong in Gryffindor, where dwell the brave at heart, their daring, nerve, and chivalry set Gryffindors apart; or that they might belong in Hufflepuff, where they are just and loyal, those patient Hufflepuffs are true; or yet in wise old Ravenclaw, if they've a ready mind, where those of wit and learning, will always find their kind; or perhaps in Slytherin where they'd make their real friends. The whole hall burst into applause when the hat had finished its song. It bowed to each of the four tables and then became quite still again.

Minerva now stepped forward holding a long roll of parchment.

'When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted,' she announced. 'Anderson, Lisa!'

Venus paid no attention to those being sorted, until, 'Dumbledore, Adrian.'

Venus smiled at Adrian as he walked confidently up to get Sorted ignoring the muttering that had begun.

'Dumbledore? As in Professor Dumbledore's son?'

'Must be, Dumbledore isn't a very popular last name.'

Venus watched as Adrian sat on the stool and the moment the hat touched his head, it yelled 'SLYTHERIN!'

The Slytherin table erupted with cheers. Venus was not surprised. Both of Adrian's parents had been in Slytherin. Speaking of parents...Venus looked over at the middle of the staff table and saw the headmaster beaming with pride as his son took his seat with his fellow Slytherins. Tom Dumbledore had now been headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry now for twenty years. It was hard to believe that he was once the evil Dark Lord Voldemort. Students always said that he was one of the best headmasters Hogwarts had ever seen and the staff agreed saying that he was just like his father, Albus Dumbledore.

Venus' attention then went to the man sitting next to Tom, as Hayden's name was called out, which brought even more muttering.

'Hayden Dumbledore, did she say?'

'The Prince Hayden?'

'Must be. That would explain why the king and queen are here!'

They were right. The man sitting next to Tom was indeed King Severus. After the Battle at Hogwarts, the Ministry had to give all power back to the royal family, and Severus grudgingly took the throne, after a long argument with his family, trying to get his brother to take the throne, which Tom refused immediately. But everyone had to agree that Severus was the best person for the job, along with his queen...Aurora. Both watched as their greatest treasure was sorted also into Slytherin and Venus swore that she could see tears of proudness forming in Aurora's eyes. She hoped her mother wouldn't do that as she was sorted, but she knew that her mother never would. She never got emotional over small things like that.

Once more, Venus zoned out until her own name was called.

'Malfoy, Venus.'

Smiling, Venus walked forward. Her great-grandmother smiled down at her as she accepted the hat off her and plonked it on her head, wondering which house she would be put in.

'Hmm,' said a small voice in her ear. 'You are just like your mother. She too was particularly difficult to place. Both of you obviously have the Slytherin background history, but you also have the intelligence of a Ravenclaw, the just and loyal of a Hufflepuff and the chivalry and bravery of a Gryffindor. Do you have a particular house you wish to be in? Would you like to be in Slytherin with your brother and cousins, like your father and great-uncles? Or perhaps you would like to be a Gryffindor like your mother? Would you like to choose like your mother did all those years ago?'

I'm actually not bothered as to which house I'm in. I'm sure that I will be able to make friends with the people in whatever house I'm in. Mum had no trouble making friends with the other houses. Thought Venus.

'In that case. Better be...GRYFFINDOR!' yelled the hat to the rest of the hall.

Smiling brightly, Venus joined the Gryffindor table where she sat down next to Rose, Hugo's older sister.

'Congrats, Venus.' said Rose, giving her a brief hug.

'Yeah, congratulations squirt.' said a quiet voice from the table behind her. Slytherin table.

Turning around, Venus saw her brother Scorpius grinning over at her along with Adrian and Hayden.

'Thanks. And stop calling me squirt!' whispered Venus, before turning her attention back to the teachers table.

She saw Hagrid sitting up their happily, along with Professor Flitwick, Babbling, Trelawney (surprisingly), Vector, Madam Hooch, Pomfrey, Pince, and Professor Neville Longbottom, an old friend of Venus and Scorpius' parents, who taught Herbology. But those teachers and staff members weren't who Venus was looking for and then she found them.

Sitting on the other side of Tom. There was her father, the current Potion Master at Hogwarts, Draco Malfoy. Apparently, her grandfather, Lucius, wasn't too thrilled about his son becoming a teacher, but after a while her grandmother, Narcissa, managed to talk him around eventually. Draco Malfoy had been a Potions Professor since the year following the Battle at Hogwarts. With Severus going off to rule Europe and Slughorn going into retirement, Draco ended up being the number one choice. It was hard though, growing up seeing as her father was away at Hogwarts most of the time, but now Venus was just happy that she would be able to see him every single day now.

Slowly, Venus' eyes left her father and moved across to the woman sitting next to him...her mother. Harrietta Malfoy, previously known as "Harry Potter" and Harrietta Dumbledore, and also known as the Chosen One, The-Girl-Who-Lived and Saviour of the Wizarding World. Venus' mother hadn't always been the Defence Against the Dark Arts professor. No, she had once been a mighty Auror and is the main reason most of the Death Eaters, were currently in Azkaban. However, when she fell pregnant with Scorpius, Harri had quit her job and began a stay at home mum until Venus was five, when Tom asked her if she would take the Defence Against the Dark Arts post. And after many encouragements from her friends and old DA members, Harri accepted it.

As though feeling her daughter's eyes on her, Harri turned and looked at Venus, before smiling one of her beautiful and loving smiles. Venus smiled back before looking over at her cousins. Yep, this was going to be the beginning of their adventure now.

* * *

><p><strong>The End<strong>

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**Unmasked Mystery IV is now up!**

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><strong>Azaelia Silmarwen facebook page:<strong> link on profile  
><strong>Written:<strong> 5 January 2012

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT CLAIM OWNERSHIP OVER THE ORIGINAL COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL IN THIS STORY. THIS IS A NON-PROFIT FANDUB CREATED BY FANS, FOR FANS. NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT INTENDED. FAIR USE ONLY.**


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